Pulsar
by Lunabeegood
Summary: Trip is promoted to Captain of his own ship after the events of Home. An AU look at what might have been, the events that brought them back together, and some pon farr thrown into the mix just for fun. A WIP story that is a Trip/T'Pol romance fic with some drama and angst thrown in. Flashbacks are in italics as are conversations that are in their bond space.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: I read a ff a while ago where Trip got a promotion to another ship right after Home. I honestly can't find the ff and wish I could name it in this note. It was unfinished and had to do with multiple realities and Captain's mess dinners gone badly…anyways, I took that basic idea of Trip having his own ship and this came about. I owe the first ff the original idea, but the rest is all my own doing. All characters belong to Paramount and I make no money from this. Flashbacks and head conversations are in italics.**

XXX

Trip watched the _Pulsar_ begin the painstaking 45-minute docking procedure on Jupiter station. He was normally a patient man but he hadn't seen T'Pol in five months and there was only a 6-hour window when _Enterprise_ was docked there as well. He had only a few hours with her and he didn't want to sacrifice one minute of it.

An alarm sounded on the bridge.

"Report," he said to the helmsman.

"It looks like there's a clamp that's malfunctioning," Mavis Kimmel reported.

"God damn it," Trip sighed under his breath. "Can we choose a new port?"

"Negative, it's the only one open," Mavis reported. "My message says it'll be 20 minutes to repair."

Trip massaged his forehead with his one hand and sighed.

"Can they speed that up at all?" He asked, annoyed.

"I'll ask," Mavis nodded as she started typing.

"I'll be in my ready room," Trip said sharply before he rose from the Captain's chair and walked toward it. If he could have slammed the damn sliding door he would have. Twenty minutes is Jupiter Station lingo for an hour, at least. Add the forty-five-minute docking procedure and they'd just lost about two hours.

"Fuck," he said under his breath as he paced the small room. It was half the size of Jon's but he still managed two strides before he had to turn and go back. The ready room seemed uncomfortably hot today as well, which seemed to mimic his angry temperament.

They said that it would work, that it was what they both needed to do, that they could still meet and talk into their 'space' regularly so it wouldn't be that bad…but nothing compared to having her next to him, under him, on top of him, anywhere within ten friggin feet of him. And, yes, five months of celibacy was weighing on his general mood, but it was more than that. He just wanted to touch her, hold her, talk with her, watch the way her eyes danced as she spoke…god, he was a mess. Ten months ago, he and T'Pol had finally figured out the disaster that had been their relationship and committed themselves to each other. Despite the separate ships, and the loneliness and the unsure future of his next posting, they had thought this was something that could work. In a way, it was their only option if they both wanted to stay in space and further their careers. It was very logical to do this, but it still didn't make it any easier.

He felt her reaching out to him over the space and tried to supress his anger before he opened his mind to hers.

" _I heard about the clamp."_

" _It's going to add an hour, at least," Trip sighed. "I'm sorry."_

" _Did you damage the clamp?" T'Pol asked._

 _Trip laughed._

" _I thought not," T'Pol sighed. "No apology from you is needed."_

" _It's looking like our time together just got shorter," Trip said sadly._

" _If the Pulsar didn't need that warp coil repair it would have been longer," T'Pol reminded him. "Lieutenant Hess jokingly asked if you had something to do with that."_

 _Trip laughed, hard._

" _I don't get down to engineering much," Trip said. "But that's something I should keep in mind if I ever want to see you sooner."_

" _You didn't, did you?" T'Pol asked._

" _No, T'Pol, I did not damage the warp coil on my ship so I could see you," Trip said honestly._

" _Well, I will come aboard as soon as the docking procedure clears me," T'Pol said softly. "We will make the most of the time we have. Is Commander Ncumbe ready to assume command?"_

" _Yes," Trip said with a chuckle. "He wanted to take over before we docked because I seemed…agitated. But I sent him for lunch. He should be back about the time Jupiter station decides to let us dock."_

" _I will see you soon," T'Pol said softly just before she broke the connection._

XXX

"Where's the Captain?" Mohammad Ncumbe asked as he looked around the bridge. It was just Mavis at the helm and Javier at the main control.

"In his ready room," Mavis said. "But I'd let him be, if I were you."

Mohammad looked at the work being done on Jupiter Station on the view screen.

"Why have we not begun docking?" He asked confused.

"Malfunctioning clamp, twenty minutes," Javier informed him.

"Oh," he sighed as he turned and looked toward the closed ready room door. It was going to be an hour, possibly two, before they even started the docking procedure. It was times like that that Mohammad wished they had a transporter like the larger ships.

He knew his Captain was involved with T'Pol, first officer of Enterprise. They had not made their relationship a secret, they both served on different ships to there was no need. He knew senior officers on board both their ships probably knew, but it was something all of Starfleet wasn't probably privy to. He also knew, from his many meals with the Captain, that they were not only in love, but had committed themselves to each other in some sort of Vulcan ceremony that the Captain had not gone into details about. It was an odd relationship but one that the Captain seemed to enjoy. Mohamed had worked with a handful of Vulcans as an armory officer and they all seemed…reclusive, reticent, aloof, and serious. He always wondered why his Captain, who was loud, gregarious, and funny had attached himself to a person like this. Now, he had learned through Starfleet talk, that T'Pol was slightly different, but, having never met her he couldn't say how.

He also knew that Enterprise was docked and they hadn't seen each other in five months. The Captain had been growing impatient and somewhat short with his crew the last few weeks. In some ways, the repair to the warp coil had been a lucky break, otherwise, the Captain and his girlfriend wouldn't have met up for another two months.

Mohammad was always happy to return home to his wife and children at shore leave, but the need that the Captain seemed to have to his girlfriend, especially lately, was something foreign to his first officer. But it was clear, to everyone on board that when the Captain wasn't happy, no one was.

Mohammad took a deep breath and contacted Jupiter Station, prepared to rip into anyone who was going to prolong the clamp repair and delay their dock more than thirty minutes. He needed a happy Captain if the next few months were going to be successful.

XXX

Trip sat and looked at the PADD in front of him. It was the latest report from Starfleet about readiness of NX-3 and some of the changes that had been made to her. She was a Warp 6 ship, the fastest in the fleet, but there were difficulties with the hull plating and a new material they were using. The launch date, and his transfer had been pushed back an additional two months. It was the third delay of two months and Trip was wondering if Starfleet was ever going to announce his command of the ship. It wasn't until that announcement that he would be able to have T'Pol join his crew, so they were left in a holding pattern as the hull plating was, again, tinkered with.

He thought back to his last promotion to the Pulsar, a Warp 3 capable ship that explored and patrolled the area of space between Vulcan and Earth, ironically. He had just returned from T'Pol's wedding and her rejection of him to Jon's smiling face as he exited the shuttle. Trip had felt like shit, probably looked like shit, and wanted nothing more then to crawl into the Jefferies tube and work until he collapsed.

" _How was your vacation?" Jon asked as he clapped him on the back, apparently slow to see his friend's distress._

" _Vulcan is beautiful," Trip said, trying to avoid the subject of T'Pol._

" _T'Pol stayed longer?" Jon asked._

 _Trip sighed and rolled his tongue in his cheek. No time like the present._

" _She got married," Trip said in a neutral voice._

" _What?" Jon asked. "She hadn't said anything to me."_

" _She didn't know until she was there that is was…expected," Trip said as he shouldered his bag and started to walk with Jon by his side._

" _I don't…I don't understand, you don't seem very pleased," Jon said, oblivious to the relationship between his two officers._

 _Trip stopped and looked at him for a moment, half tempted to tell him everything because none of it mattered any more._

" _It was an obligation to her family and not something she was happy about," Trip said. "She and her husband are not really going to live like a traditional Vulcan couple. She was sort of…pressured into the wedding."_

" _Like an arranged marriage?" Jon asked, astounded._

" _Yeah," Trip said quietly. "I'm kinda tired and…"_

" _Oh well, I was actually meeting you for another reason and I hoped we could talk if…if you're up to it?" Jon asked, slightly confused by Trip's depressive attitude. T'Pol must have really not wanted to marry this Vulcan guy if even Trip, her friend, is this upset about it. In that moment Jon felt incredibly sorry for his Vulcan first officer and the cultural obligations she was asked to uphold._

" _Can I come by your ready room in a half hour?" Trip asked. "Vulcan transports are hotter than hell and I'd like to shower and change if that's okay?"_

" _Uh, sure," Jon said. "Of course! Thirty-minutes!" Jon smiled at him before he walked quickly in the other direction from where Trip was headed._

 _After a pitiful ugly unmanly cry in the shower and a 'buck-up' talk to himself he joined Jon in his ready room and immediately noticed some official paperwork sitting on the table._

" _What's this?" Trip asked as he looked down at the paperwork with his name on it._

" _Starfleet wants to give you NX-3," Jon said with enthusiasm and delight._

" _What?" Trip asked, astounded and confused._

" _It'll be ready in sixteen months and it's yours," Jon said proudly as he clapped Trip on the shoulder. "Until then, they need you to Captain the Pulsar."_

" _I'm sorry?" Trip asked._

" _Fredericks is leaving to have her baby and they need you to take over until the NX-3 is ready to break dock," Jon said as he turned and poured them both a glass of whisky. "Sort of a proving ground for you as a Captain so when they make the announcement it doesn't look like you're jumping the command structure."_

" _I get NX-3?" Trip asked, still unbelieving._

" _You, Captain Charles Tucker the third, get NX-3," Jon laughed as he handed Trip a glass._

 _Trip sat down heavily in the chair, his mouth open in astonishment._

" _I think this must be what I looked like when they told me I had Enterprise," Jon laughed before he clinked his glass with Trip and the two men downed the shot._

" _Holy hell," Trip muttered._

" _You just need to sign your promotion papers, do a good job on Pulsar and…well, the rest is Starfleet history," Jon said as he handed Trip a pen._

 _Trip's hand shook a little as he took the pen and he looked up at Jon for reassurance._

" _You're going to be one hell of a Captain, Trip," Jon smiled at his friend._

 _Trip signed the papers and sat back into his chair. "Jesus Christ."_

" _You ship out to the Pulsar in four days, which I know isn't much time but…"_

" _No, no, it's fine," Trip said nodding, still surprised by the turn of events. Then he thought of T'Pol, who wouldn't be back for another two weeks. It was probably best that he left before she returned anyways, it would be easier for him and less awkward for her._

" _I have a party planned for tonight so we can tell everyone about your promotion," Jon said as he took the papers and started to scan them to Starfleet. "We can't say anything about NX-3 yet, but, well, you're now a Captain."_

" _My own ship," Trip muttered._

" _The Pulsar is a small one that patrols and explores between Earth and Vulcan but…"_

" _I'm sorry, did you say Earth and Vulcan?" Trip asked._

" _Yes, why?" Jon asked, distractedly as he typed a quick message to accompany the official documents._

" _No reason," Trip sighed, the irony that he would spend sixteen months moving between her world and his was not lost on the new Captain._

Forty minutes later, Trip felt the ship shudder slightly and the distinct feeling that they were docking.

He put down the report he was reading on his PADD and walked out onto the bridge.

"Report," he said before he even noticed Mohamed.

"We're docking, sir," Mavis smiled at him.

"How?" Trip asked confused as he approached Mohamed.

"I called in some favors and…"

"What?" Trip asked astounded.

"I also explained that we had a consultant that needed to come aboard immediately so regular protocols have been altered and…"

"I could practically kiss you Mohamed," Trip said excitedly.

"Let's not, and say we did," Mohammed joked.

Trip wrapped an arm tightly around his shoulder and smiled broadly at the man.

"Thank you," Trip sighed.

"Our consultant should be ready to board in four minutes," Mohamed said with a smirk. "If you wanted to meet her, sir."

Trip didn't have to be told twice. He turned and walked quickly to the turbolift.

"You have the bridge Commander," Trip said with a smile just before the doors closed.

"Somebody's getting laid," Javier said quietly and with amusement.

"At least someone is," Mavis sighed, thinking of the last time she'd seen her boyfriend five months ago when they had shore leave.

"Enough you two," Mohamed chastised them amicably. He couldn't help the smirk that ran across his face though, Charles Tucker always wore his heart on his sleeve.

XXX

"They said I didn't need to wait for the proper…" T'Pol said as she walked through the connecting doors surprised.

"That'll be all Ensign," Trip nodded to the ensign who was walking with T'Pol.

"Mohammed got you through quicker as a consultant," Trip said quietly as they walked through the hall side by side.

They passed several crew members who nodded and smiled at their Captain and his guest.

"Its design is quite different from the Enterprises," T'Pol said as she looked around his ship. "I have seen the design, but it's astounding how different it feels in person."

"If we have time, I'll give you a tour," Trip said as he turned left and she followed.

"Where are we going now?" She asked.

"My quarters," Trip said with a smirk. "I even got chef to make you some plomeek broth but I can't promise that it's any good."

"I already had lunch," T'Pol said as a few crew members stopped chatting as they passed her and Trip.

"Captain," they nodded in unison and then quickly scurried away.

"They seem somewhat afraid of you," T'Pol said, surprised.

"Uh, I kinda blew a gasket about the warp coil," Trip said, somewhat embarrassed. "They were part of the engineering crew."

T'Pol nodded knowingly.

"Home sweet home," Trip said as he entered his code and the door opened to his room.

She walked inside and looked around. It was as large as Captain Archers and sparsely decorated. It didn't look like he spent much time here.

"You haven't really put anything out like most humans do," T'Pol noted as she looked around at the one picture of his family, one of some Enterprise crew, and one of her.

"I didn't bring much with me it was such a fast switch," Trip admitted. "Almost everything except my clothes and a couple of things went into storage at Starfleet base."

T'Pol found his sparse space appealing to her Vulcan sensibilities, but disturbing because it seemed so unlike him.

"I sense great desire from you," T'Pol said as she turned to face him. "Perhaps we should have sexual relations immediately so you have time to recover and engage in it again?"

"You're such a romantic," Trip smiled at her as he approached and kissed her soundly on the lips. She instinctively responded to his kiss and felt his tongue penetrate her mouth in a desperate fashion. His body temperature was hotter than normal and she wondered, absently, if he was coming down with an illness. She would ask him to get his doctor to give him a complete exam.

Before much time had passed they were naked and tangled in bed together, his desire wafting over her as he plundered her core with his fingers and lips and she writhed on the bed naked and wanton. It was one of the most erotic sexual experiences they had as a couple and she felt overwhelming desire float through her core as he brought her to orgasm twice without even penetrating her with his penis.

"God, I have images that replay in my head of you," Trip said as he rose off his knees, wiped his mouth and slinked up her body. "But nothing even comes close to this."

She pulled her head up and kissed him soundly before she felt him enter her. He groaned at the complete feeling of enclosure and wildly started to pump in and out of her, as if he was a man with only one goal in life; completion. She tightened her walls even more around him and saw him gasp, then his face twist before she felt him release into her.

"Ohhhhhffff," he said loudly as his ejaculate went on and on. She wondered, absently, if it had ever taken this long for him to empty himself into her.

"Christ," he sighed as his body flopped on top of hers and she easily took his weight on her sturdy Vulcan frame. He was breathing heavily into her shoulder and she worried he'd strained something his lovemaking was so vigorous.

"God, I'm so sorry, T'Pol, I don't know where that came from," he said as he lifted himself up off her and flopped down on the bed next to her. "I had plans for lunch, then I wanted to hear all about Elisia, then eventually sex and…"

"You did, have lunch, in a matter of speaking," T'Pol said plainly.

He laughed a full-bodied laugh at her joke and didn't stop for several minutes.

She rose naked from his bed and walked to the plomeek soup he had in stasis for her. She lifted the spoon to her mouth and tried it.

"It's adequate but not up to chef's standard, and he is not up to my mother's standard," she said before she turned to look at him naked and sated in his dishevelled bed.

"It's the first time he's made it, apparently," Trip said as he raised himself up onto an elbow and looked at her beautiful naked body trying to memorize it for the next few months of celibacy. "Tell me about Elisia."

XXX

"With all due respect, Commander, I'd like to show the Captain myself," Ensign Bilson said with an air of indifference.

"And I said," Mohamed reminded her. "That I will present your findings to the Captain. If he has any further questions, we'll call you in."

"But," Ensign Bilson started.

"Dismissed," Mohamed said with authority.

Miranda Bilson walked out of the Captain's ready room in a huff. Mohamed was sick and tired of her trying to usurp authority on the Pulsar. Her father may be the Captain of Neptune VI but that didn't give her any special privileges on board this ship. She had only been in space and on this ship for five months, she was an arrogant scientist who needed to learn the command structure on a ship.

But, Miranda Bilson had other ideas. She decided that Commander Ncumbe was just trying to steal her thunder. The Captain, the very handsome and affable Captain Tucker, would listen to her findings over a cup of coffee. They would laugh and talk and he would see how truly brilliant she was to discover this.

Miranda knew because Commander Ncumbe was on the bridge that he was either in the gym or his quarters so she started to search out the Captain.

As luck would have it the Captain was walking toward her with a Vulcan woman talking.

"Captain, might I have a word?" Miranda Bilson asked as she smiled at him and puffed out her chest.

"I actually am giving Commander T'Pol a tour right now Ensign Bilson," Trip said nicely. "I'll talk to you later today unless it's pressing."

"Well, actually, it's about the nebula surrounding Vulcan," Ensign Bilson started. She didn't notice the Captain sign heavily and place his hands on his hips annoyed but T'Pol did.

"Did you present these finding to Lieutenant Pennington?" Trip asked her annoyed.

"I didn't, I felt that if I spoke with you directly…" Miranda began, stepping a little more into Trip's personal space.

T'Pol could tell she was attempting to use her sexual attractiveness to get Trip to listen to her.

"You should present any findings to Pennington, she'll present to Ncumbe, and he presents to me," Trip reminded her in a clipped tone.

"It's just that this nebula is acting out of character and I think we should spend more time studying it," Miranda pushed forward oblivious to his rising anger. She was taking time away from T'Pol and that was something he was not happy about. "It hasn't behaved this exact way ever and if you'll look at my findings…"

She pushed the PADD into Trip's hands and he briefly glanced down at it before he narrowed his eyes and looked at her.

"I am off duty and busy with a guest, Ensign," Trip said through gritted teeth. "You will present your findings to Pennington and observe the chain of command on board this vessel, do you understand?"

Miranda's eyes went wide and she swallowed hard. She had never seen the Captain angry before and it was daunting to have his anger directed at you.

"I uh…I just thought you might be the best one to understand and…"

Trip was about to hand the PADD back to her when T'Pol reached around him and took it from him, touching the screen and looking at her calculations.

"Uh, that's classified," Miranda said with some venom.

Trip looked at her astounded. "This is Commander T'Pol of the Enterprise, she has one of the highest security clearances in Starfleet."

"Oh," Miranda said.

"The nebula you are studying behaves this way every 43.687 years," T'Pol said as he handed back the PADD. "It is a reaction to atmospheric pressure and the warp signatures which bounce off the planet from nearby space travel. I will send you all relevant Vulcan information on these patterns if you wish to study them further."

"Oh, uh, thank you," Miranda said as she looked dejectedly at her PADD. "I thought I'd discovered…"

"The nebula has been behaving this way for thousands of years," T'Pol said kindly.

"Oh, well, then…" Miranda started.

"Dismissed Ensign," Trip said clearly.

She nodded and stepped away from him as he placed a hand on the small of T'Pol's back and guided her down the hallway. She leaned into him and said something softly before they disappeared around the corner.

"Did you meet the Captain's girlfriend?" Hugh asked as he walked up behind her.

"His what?" Miranda asked.

"The Vulcan, his girlfriend?" Hugh asked her with a smirk. "Was she like other Vulcans or different?"

"She…she was fine," Miranda said shaking her head. "His girlfriend, really?"

"Apparently Enterprise is only docked here for a couple more hours and they're spending as much time together before they go their own way," Hugh said with a smirk. "I'm surprised they left his quarters because if I had a girlfriend with a body like that, who I hadn't seen in months…"

"I get it," Miranda said, slightly crushed.

"What's the matter with you?" Hugh asked, confused.

"Nothing," Miranda sighed before she started to walk away. "Nothing at all."

XXX

"You seem to be getting an illness," T'Pol said as she touched his forehead. After the tour of the ship they had found their way back into his bed for another vigorous session of sexual relations. He had taken her on her knees this time and she had enjoyed the angle greatly and vocalized her joy to him.

"I'm fine, just a bug," Trip said before he ran a light hand up and down the side of her body. "Sure, you can't damage something on Enterprise so you can stay a little longer?"

"As it is," T'Pol said as she looked at his beautiful face. "The Captain is allowing me to evade protocol and board Enterprise only ten minutes before it is scheduled to launch. The usual protocol is an hour before…"

"I know," Trip said as he snuggled into her frame. "And I'm grateful for the time with you."

T'Pol sighed and shivered slightly. The sweat on her body had cooled and his room was rather cold.

"Here," he said as he pulled the blanket up and around her. "As much as I like the view, it's no reason for you to get cold."

"Thank you," she said before she kissed the top of his cheek. "I heard about the delay."

He sighed and closed his eyes. "I'm starting to believe I'm never getting that ship."

"The Juno will be your ship," T'Pol said softly. "And I will serve with you on it."

"We haven't even asked them yet," Trip said, doubtful. "I can't live the rest of my life like this."

"I heard, through someone who I'm still in contact with in Intelligence, that they are considering families on Orion class ships," T'Pol said softly as she traced a circle on his skin. "If they are considering that, then surely they would allow a couple…"

"As long as we don't have kids, that may be possible but…"

"But?"

Trip sighed and wiped his mouth. "I know you want kids T'Pol, and I don't want my career getting in the way of that."

T'Pol looked at him with a raised eyebrow.

"I have never said I wanted children," T'Pol corrected him.

"But you've never said you didn't, either," Trip said softly as he watched her face.

"I agree that children would be nice, but I am also open to not having them," T'Pol said as she watched him carefully. "It is an honour to get the Juno and one you cannot turn down."

Trip sighed and scratched his head. "You know I always thought I'd have kids but…but now as I look at the future I'm not sure I see how they fit into it. I wouldn't want you living somewhere and just visiting my family…Mohamed does it, as does Sims but…if I'm going to be a father, that's not the father I want to be."

"And I don't want to sacrifice my career or my relationship with you to have children," T'Pol said honestly.

"So…what are we saying here?"

"We're saying that as much as we'd be agreeable to children, they are not something we envision for our future," T'Pol said clearly.

"Are you okay with that? I mean, really okay with that?" Trip asked.

"I am," T'Pol said with a small smile she only showed him. "Are you?"

"I am," he said softly as he kissed her nose. "But if you want to re-visit this at any time, don't think we're locked into this decision, because I'm prepared to re-think this if you feel strongly about it."

"Agreed," T'Pol nodded. "Although, honestly, I cannot see my decision changing."

Trip smirked at her. "Me neither, but, you never know."

T'Pol pushed him off her and stood up from his bed. "Shall we go not make a child in the shower? I have to leave soon."

Trip chuckled at her word usage and got up as well. "God, I'm already starting to miss you and you haven't even left."

"I miss you too t'hy'la," she said before she guided him into his washroom.

Forty minutes later, Trip kissed her goodbye at the airlock and watched her disappear behind the door. He felt his stomach drop and his spirits as well. It was another two months before they were scheduled for leave on Vulcan and he hoped Enterprise was close enough that he could transport onto their ship for a week of R&R. He had promised her he'd visit the doctor and, as he looked at his watch, he had just enough time to do that before his senior staff meeting on the bridge.

 _It was his first senior staff meeting and Trip was nervous. He'd joined the Pulsar only twelve hours ago and was still a little shell-shocked that he was in command. The crew was smaller, with only a compliment of forty people and he hoped to learn all their names soon. His first officer/armory chief was Mohamed Ncumbe an eleven-year Starfleet veteran who had served as first officer for four years already. He was married with three children and his family resided in Oklahoma. His chief helmsman was Ensign Mavis Kimmel and Australian who was only on her second space tour, she was competent and easy to talk to with an interest in pretty much everything and everyone. Dr. Carol Pennington served as his chief science officer and medical officer. She was married to an engineer who worked at the Starfleet base on Vulcan and they had an older daughter who was in college on Vulcan. His chief engineer, Lieutenant Javier Borges, also served as his security officer. He was single and seemed quite the ladies man and all-around fun guy. They relied completely on universal translators as there was no need for a communications officer like Hoshi on such a small ship._

 _He was still hurting from T'Pol and the switch, although he knew it would do him good, was so fast he felt like his head was still spinning. He'd also done something foolish, well, two things foolish if she found out about both. He'd entered her room with her familiar passcode and left her a message on her computer about his transfer and it being for the best. He'd also said he loved her and wanted only happiness for her; he hoped she could find it with Koss._

 _Then, he'd taken one last look around and noticed a scarf sitting on the corner of her bed, quite out of place in her normal neat Vulcan universe. He had picked it up and it smelled immediately like her; a mix of vanilla and daisies and something that was intrinsically T'Pol. She must have been wearing it before they left, thought better, and left it as an afterthought. He pocketed the scarf before he really thought about it and left her room in a flurry. He had sentimentally placed the scarf in stasis to preserve the smell and not looked at it since. He had a sad image of himself smelling the scarf years from now when he heard she'd had a child or had left Starfleet._

Trip found himself in front of their small infirmary and as the doors opened Dr Pennington greeted him from the other side.

"Hi Captain, what can I do for you?"

"I've got a bit of a fever and I was wondering if you could just give me the once over?" Trip asked uncomfortably. Truthfully, he'd always be uncomfortable with doctors after his many injuries on Enterprise.

"Sure, hop up," she said before she picked up a scanner and walked toward him.

TBC

XXX


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note: See notes chapter one. All things in italics are a past memory.**

XXX

It had been three days since T'Pol had visited and Trip was wondering when his bad mood would finally lift. With the repair finished, Pulsar was now making its way back to Vulcan where it would rendezvous with a Vulcan ship, Shira, and assist with a group of aliens the ship had rescued. Apparently, some of the members were Human but most were Mensa and all of them refused to explain to the Vulcans what they were doing in that part of space.

Trip wiped his brow of the sweat that had accumulated and swallowed hard. Whatever he had, Pennington couldn't figure it out. It wasn't interfering with his role as Captain, but it was making him one unhappy SOB.

"Has the Shira sent the information files we requested?" Trip asked Mavis.

"No sir, not yet," Mavis replied.

"Of course not!" He said exasperated. "Hail them again."

The hail was replied to with a sub-space message; apparently the Vulcan in charge of the files was occupied and would forward them when he was available.

Trip closed his eyes and counted to ten. It was possible that T'Pol's visit had put him in a worse mood then he'd been in before.

"Hail them again in thirty minutes asking for the same files," Trip said as he reached for a PADD and started to organize crew evaluations.

"Captain Tucker?" a hail called over the comm.

"How can I help you doc?" Trip asked, happy for the distraction.

"Can I get you down here for another exam?"

"Now?" Trip asked, slightly annoyed.

"At your earliest convivence," Dr Pennington replied.

Trip looked at the empty space before him, then at the PADD with the evaluations and sighed. "I'll be right there."

He rose from his seat, told Mohamed he had the bridge and made his way to the infirmary. As he walked, he remembered the first time he'd heard T'Pol's name on Pulsar. It was part of a private conversation with Dr Pennington about two weeks after he'd taken Command.

" _Captain, can I speak with you privately?" Dr Pennington asked after a senior officers meeting._

" _Of course," Trip said as he walked her toward his ready room and waited for her to enter before him._

 _Once they entered his Ready Room he noticed that she was shifting and obviously uncomfortable._

" _Have a seat?" He asked as he gestured toward a chair._

 _She nodded and sat down in the chair, her hands gripping her knees._

" _What can I do for you?" Trip asked as he clapped his hands together and looked at her._

" _I was contacted today by Dr Phlox about…"_

" _Phlox? How's he doing?" Trip asked with a smile._

" _He seemed quite well," Dr Pennington smiled at him. "His son graduated from Art School this week."_

" _Nice," Trip nodded._

" _He contacted me about a test he thought I should run on you," she continued. "But I thought I should discuss it with you first."_

" _Test?" Trip asked. "What kind of test?"_

" _A neurological exam that's unusual to perform on a human," she continued. "It's for the equivalent of a neurological sexually transmitted disease."_

" _Excuse me?" Trip asked, surprised._

 _She swallowed hard and continued forward. "It's something rare in Vulcans, and Commander T'Pol approached Phlox to get his assistance."_

" _T'Pol got a sexually transmitted disease?" Trip asked, upset and confused._

" _Yes," she said quietly. "And she found out while recently on Vulcan that it was possible, remotely possible, to pass it along to a sexual partner and…and she named you as…"_

" _No need to continue," he said, stopping her uncomfortable explanation. "I'm assuming this is a recently acquired illness?"_

" _No," Dr Pennington explained. "She acquired Pa'nar syndrome a year and a half ago. She named you as a sexual partner during this period. Apparently, while recently on Vulcan seeking a cure, she discovered that it could also harm a human partner."_

" _Oh," Trip said softly. "Did she find a cure?"_

" _Dr Phlox didn't share that information with me," Dr Pennington explained. "The treatment for a human is a series of specific antibiotics. It's completely curable in you. In a Vulcan…"_

" _Could she die from this?" Trip asked._

" _It deteriorates neural networks over time, there are treatments but no cure," she explained. "It won't kill her, but it will take away her emotional control."_

 _Trip took a deep breath and closed his eyes. It was a Vulcan's worst nightmare. A year and a half ago she must have slept with someone who gave her this. She was probably seeking a cure so she could consummate her marriage with her very Vulcan husband without getting him sick._

" _What do I need to do?" Trip asked pulled from his morbid thought._

" _A scan and some bloodwork," she said, happy the conversation was ending. "Please also know that doctor-patient confidentiality keeps me from discussing your medical information with anyone else on this ship or in Starfleet, including Commander T'Pol."_

" _I understand that Doc, but thank you for making that clear," he said softly. "I'll come down later today?"_

" _That would work," she said as she stood. "It's highly unlikely you have it, but it's better to be careful."_

" _Agreed," Trip said as he stood as well. "Thank you for your candor."_

 _Trip watched her leave and sat looking at his computer screen for a long time. He typed a quick message to T'Pol that contained only one line: Please tell me you found a cure._

 _An hour later he got a simple response: Yes. Have you been tested?_

 _The next day he sent her another message: Test came back negative._

 _Moments later, he heard from her: Good._

 _That was their last communication for weeks._

"So, doc, what do you need me for?" Trip asked as he approached her.

"I would like to run some more bloodwork," she said as he approached him with a needle.

"You haven't taken it all yet?" Trip joked as he rolled up his sleeve.

"Your testosterone levels are quite high," she said absently. "I'm considering illnesses where this could be an effect."

Trip nodded and tried not to wince as the blood was drawn.

"Any dizziness or other symptoms?"

"No, still really hot and sweaty, a mild headache," Trip said as he watched vial after vial of blood leave his body. He didn't mention that he was horny and fighting erections throughout the day. That, he assumed, was due to his recent sexual activity and the loss of it. "Bad-tempered, not sleeping terribly well."

"So, nothing new?" She asked with a raised eyebrow.

He shook his head in the negative.

"I'll run some more tests and get back to you," she said as she walked away from him.

"Thanks doc," Trip said before he returned to the bridge.

"They sent the files Captain," Mavis said proudly as he entered.

"Finally," Trip sighed. "Send them to my ready room."

He sat down heavily in the chair and looked toward the environmental controls. The room was on it's coldest setting and he felt as if he was in a furnace.

There was the file and a message from T'Pol waiting for him. He opened hers first, it would be short and then he could focus on work.

She appeared on the screen in a recorded video message. She didn't look so hot herself, her skin was pale and her forehead had a thin sheen of sweat on it.

"Fuck, I wonder if you got what I have," Trip spoke to himself before he hit play.

"I am calling to inquire if you have seen the doctor yet and if your condition has improved. I enjoyed our time together but worry about your health. Can we set up a call tomorrow when we can speak in person? I am off duty as of 15:00 hours. I miss you."

The transmission ended and he looked at her face on the screen. She seemed to be breathing funny as she spoke, as if she was asthmatic or something. She had caught what he had and the sooner Dr Pennington found out how to fix it, the better for both. He was expected to perform as a mediator between the Vulcans and the aliens they rescued and he needed to be in top form.

Trip opened the file the Vulcans had sent.

"Tomorrow?" He asked, confused. They were supposed to intercept each other in two days time. A meeting tomorrow meant the Shira had gone to warp 7, at least, to meet them. Things were probably not going well with their guests and, if he knew the Vulcans, they were looking to unload their passengers as quickly as possible. Which meant, Pulsar was probably going back to Earth sooner than expected.

"Tucker to the Bridge," Trip said into his Comm. "We're intercepting the Shira at 15:00 tomorrow. Please advise the crew to prepare."

"Yes Captain," Mohamed said across the comm.

Trip then looked at the message from T'Pol and cringed. He was going to be tied up with the mediation as of that time tomorrow and possibly for days. He couldn't guarantee any particular time to speak until he was done with this negotiation.

He leaned forward and hit the record button on his screen.

"Darlin' you look sick. Can you please see Phlox and find out what sort bug I probably gave you? I still feel like shit warmed over, but Carol is doing her best to figure it out. We're meeting up with the Shira ahead of schedule tomorrow at 15:00 and I'm expected to negotiate this situation into a better place. I probably won't be available for a face-to-face for a few days. I'm sorry. Can you let me know what Phlox says though? I miss you."

Trip rubbed his eyes and looked down at his tented pants. He had masturbated more in the last three days then he had since…well, he couldn't even remember a three-day period since he was a randy teenager when he had done it that much. He was going to get a sprained wrist at this point. He needed to read the reports, but he needed to deal with this if he was ever going to focus on his work. Trip stood from his chair and walked to the washroom, it seemed wrong to jack-off in his ready room.

XXX

"We just wanted to live with our own societal rules," Adrana the Mensa leader said to Trip as she sat at the table with him and the Captain of the Shira.

"They live without morals or ethics and when we are kind enough to help them, they flaunt their lifestyle in the face of their rescuers," Kiv the Vulcan Captain said with venom.

As far as Trip could tell the Mensa and the humans were a type of intergalactic hippie commune that believed in free love, multiple partners, and an egalitarian society. Adrana, for instance was the leader this month. Next month it would be another person.

"And this flaunting?" Trip inquired.

"We believe that sex is a free expression of love that shouldn't be private," Adrana said wistfully.

Trip nodded and swallowed hard. She looked a lot like T'Pol, long, lean, darker skin and short hair. She had a nice ass too. From behind, it would be hard to tell the difference…

Trip snapped away from his thoughts and re-focused.

"So, you have had sex freely…while on board the Shira?" Trip inquired, trying to not sound as if he was picturing sex with her.

"In front of my crew, in the dining hall, the hallways…" Kiv elaborated. "It's despicable."

"Adrana, you do understand that Vulcans only mate once every seven years, so your display of…affection with other members of your society is…unwelcome on this ship?" Trip asked tactfully.

"We don't recognize the authority of this ship," Adrana said as she crossed her arms over her ample chest. Trip noticed her hard nipples through her thin shirt and felt himself harden.

"See?!" Kiv said in a very un-Vulcan display of anger.

Trip looked at him surprised and Kiv suddenly realized how he had acted.

"I apologize," Kiv said as he took a deep breath. "I have had little time to mediate because I have been dealing with…incidents all over my ship. I have crew members who have had to take mental health leaves and stay confined to their quarters to avoid…to avoid walking into a mating couple or group."

"Group?" Trip asked with his eyebrows raised.

"Sex should not be limited to one partner, whoever wants to join, is always welcome," Adrana said as she met his eyes.

Trip swallowed hard and tried to think of insects and frogs, anything that would calm down the sudden sexual fire that was burning inside his gut.

"Adana, Kiv recognizes your societal differences but out of respect for his ship, your people also need to recognize his rules while on board," Trip began as he wiped his sweaty forehead and tried to rid his brain of sudden images of multiple naked T'Pol's having sex with him on top of a warp coil. "Just like you don't go into restricted zones or open airlocks, you are asked not to engage in sexual relations in public spaces."

"My people will never agree to that," Adana said as she met his eyes. Even her eyes were close to T'Pol's in colour. Had it not been for the horns on the side of her head and the small amount of fur on her rounded ears and longish hands…

"I ask you to bring this concept to them and take a vote this afternoon," Trip said. "We can meet for dinner, together, all of us, on my ship and further discuss this."

"That is agreeable to me," Kiv nodded.

"I don't anticipate my people will agree," Adana said as she rose and offered her hand to Trip. "But I will meet you and Captain Kiv for dinner at 20:00."

Trip stood and took her hand. As he shook it he had an overwhelming urge to step closer and rub his erection against her. Luckily, he had more self control, and a Vulcan mate that would probably sever his head if he ever did such a thing. Both Kiv and Trip watched her leave and when the door shut Trip turned to Kiv and sighed.

"I see why you went to warp 7 to meet us," Trip said as he met Kiv's gaze.

"Wine?" Kiv asked as he produced two glasses and a bottle.

"Vulcans don't normally drink," Trip grinned at him.

"I have made an exception this last week," Kiv sighed before he poured them each a generous glass and sat back in his chair cradling his own.

Trip took the glass and sat back down with the man.

"I can now start to imagine what life has been like on board this last week," Trip said.

"I have seriously considered undergoing a deep form of suppression therapy on Vulcan where my memories of this last week will be permanently erased," Kiv admitted. "They are acting like animals taking each other in every debased way, multiple times, with multiple partners anywhere…and I do mean anywhere, they feel like it."

"I wouldn't be comfortable with that sort of behaviour on my ship, either," Trip said before he took a hearty drink and tried really really hard not to picture all the things Kiv had witnessed this last week. "Where did they ask to be taken?"

"Prime 1 Colony," Kiv explained.

"That's only three days at Warp 7," Trip noted.

"Three more days I cannot handle," Kiv explained. "You must take them the remainder of the way. We have done our part and now…"

"I don't have room on my vessel for…"

"Twenty-one," Kiv supplied.

"Twenty-one hormonally charged, sexually free individuals for…well, it would take us a week at warp 3," Trip stammered. "Kiv…"

"The Vulcan High Council has declared that tonight will be their last night on board this vessel," Kiv explained. "If you do not take them I will be forced to leave them on Minutiae Moon colony until they can arrange…"

"Minutia Moon also can't handle…" Trip started to protest.

"It is a habitable option and one the High Council is comfortable with," Kiv explained. "Given the circumstances."

Trip was just about to open his mouth to argue some more when Dr. Carol Pennington entered the room he and Kiv were sitting in.

"Doc?" Trip asked, surprised to see her on the Vulcan ship.

"I need you to come with me at once Captain," she said seriously. "We have a situation."

Trip jumped from his seat and immediately apologized to Kiv before he exited the room walking at a fast rate to the airlock and onto his ship. As soon as they cleared the Vulcan ship he turned to Carol.

"What's happened?" Trip asked.

"Captain, I'd rather discuss it in…"

"Just tell me!" Trip snapped, causing the guard at the door, Hugh Jenkins, to even jump. Trip was thinking of the biohazardous material they were currently storing on board and how a leak could be contained with minimal damage to the crew.

"You're going through Pon Farr and I need to sedate you immediately!" she yelled back.

"What?!" Trip snapped.

"Come with me now!" Carol said as she grabbed his arm.

Trip pulled away and looked at her seriously. "I will come with you, if you promise not to sedate me."

"What? Why?" Carol asked, annoyed.

"It's not going well, and I'm hoping I can negotiate something over dinner tonight," Trip said quietly. "I can't do that if I'm unconscious."

The doctor looked at him and realized it wasn't a simple situation she was dealing with. "Fine, no sedation."

"Thank you," Trip said as he placed his hands on his hips. "Now please explain to me why the hell you think I have the Vulcan blood fever?"

XXX


	3. Chapter 3

Author's Note: Bold = flashback

"Phlox just sent me a message," Dr Pennington told him as she walked with him toward the medical bay. "He's identified pon farr in T'Pol and, given your relationship, asked if there were any signs you were also affected. I thought of your testosterone levels, the sour mood, the headaches but told him that you weren't experiencing any sexual..."

At that, Trip stopped walking and looked at her stunned.

"What?" She asked.

Trip looked around the hallway and then placed a hand at the small of her back and hustled her toward medical.

"Uh, Doc," he said as they quickly walked. "Lets talk about this somewhere more private."

She nodded and looked around. No one appeared to be near but whatever the Captain had to say was obviously personal.

They entered medical and his hand dropped from her waist before her doubled over and placed his hands on his knees for support.

"Captain?!" She asked, slightly alarmed.

"I haven't told you everything about that part," Trip sighed. "But first, how's T'Pol?"

Phlox is giving her mild sedatives and is speaking with Captain Archer right now. "We need to rendevous so you and she can... deal with the pon farr."

"Fuck," Trip mumbled. The last thing either of them needed was Starfleet knowing about this. It would screw up their chances of serving together because they'd see it as a risk to the ship.

"Fuck!" Trip yelled as he punched a wall really really hard.

He took a deep breath and tried to calm down as Dr Pennington went for ice. He thought back to the first time they'd rendezvoused with Enterprise after he'd left.

 **It was three months into his Captaincy and Enterprise was on a diplomatic mission to Vulcan. He was asked to assist bc he'd developed a good raport worth Minister Fav of the Vulcan High Command. Possibly, it had to do with the Pulsar safely returning his young runaway daughter and her boyfriend without filing reports with The High Command or Starfleet.**

 **"Permission to come abroad?" Archer asked as he walked through the turbo lock.**

 **"Granted," Trip smiled genially at him before the two men embraced.**

 **"Trip," Malcolm said from just behind the Captain as he too hugged his friend.**

 **"Mal," Trip sighed as they parted.**

 **"You two it?" Trip asked looking behind them. He wasn't sure if he was saddened or relieved that T'Pol hadn't accompanied them.**

 **"Everyone wants to check out your ship and visit so we're coming in shifts," Archer smiled. "Hoshi and Hess are next. Hoshi wants to upload some new translation methods she's worked on for Vulcan that you won't have. "**

 **"Gotta love Hoshi," Trip smiled. "So, do you want the grand tour?"**

 **Hours later Trip had taken 20 Enterprise friends on tours of his ship and introduced them to the Pulsar crew. He was proud of his ship and it showed. Each time someone came through the airlock he hoped it was T'Pol and each time it wasn't he felt both anger and relief.**

 **He didn't see her until the were on Vulcan for the official ceremony opening the Starfleet wing of the university. She stood stoically next to Jon and barely glanced at him but to nod a greeting. The ceremony was short and at the reception he looked for her. He wanted to ensure she was okay from this neurological STD and was hoping for a bit more of an explanation.**

 **Trip was pulled into one greeting after another and lost track of her. Finally, when he appeared to have a moment to himself, he caught her, out of the corner of his eye, disappearing into the hallway.**

 **He quickly walked across the room and followed her.**

 **"T'Pol!" He called after her and she stopped dead in her tracks but didn't turn to look at him.**

 **He walked up to her and stood at her side. "We need to talk. "**

 **She nodded, knowing he deserved and explanation but hoping to avoid it, "Follow me."**

 **He put down his drink and followed her down a series of hallways into and older part of the university. They entered a private garden and she gestured for him to join her on a bench.**

 **"I trust you are well?" She asked. "Captaincy agrees with you. "**

 **"I am, and it does" he said awkwardly as he smiled at her. "Did Phlox treat your Pa'nar?"**

 **"He's been treating it for over a year," she supplied. "But i am now cured thanks to the work of some forward -thinking scientists at this university. "**

 **"And you were worried about me?"Trip asked**

 **"One of the scientists discovered there was a small chance i could have given the illness to you through our sexual contact. I'm sorry, i hadn't known it was possible. Pa'nar syndrome is... not something Vulcans speak about. But you didn't have it?"**

 **"No," Trip said as he shifted uncomfortably. "You got it from some Vulcan you slept with before me?"**

 **T'Pol looked at him confused.**

 **"You are the only person I've had sexual relations with," She said as she met his eyes.**

 **"But it wasn't a person who gave this to you, it was a Vulcan," Trip clarfied. She was trying to avoid the topic.**

 **T'Pol again looked at him confused.**

 **"You are the only being, Vulcan human or other, that i have ever had sexual relations with, Trip."**

 **Now it was his turn to be confused.**

 **"You mean that first night, after neuropressure when you..." He made a motion of dropping open a robe. A vision he'll never forget.**

 **"You initiated me into sexual relations," T'Pol confirmed.**

 **"What?!" He asked surprised. "You didn't say. And you seemed to know exactly what you were doing. "**

 **"I had read about it from several sources. I knew it was a possibility and i wanted to be prepared," T'Pol explained.**

 **"Huh," Trip sighed as he rubbed his jaw. "Well, whatever sources you used, darling, they were good. I had no idea. "**

 **She just raised an eyebrow.**

 **Trip would have to think about that more later, when he had more time. T'Pol rose from her seat.**

 **"We need to get back," She said business-like.**

 **"Yeah, Minister Fav seems intent on introducing me to every official on Vulcan."**

 **"He seems to like you, " T'Pol said as they walked toward the exit.**

 **"I did him a favor," Trip replied. "So, now that you don't have Pa'nar you won't get Koss sick. "**

 **T'Pol stopped walking and looked at him strangely.**

 **"Sorry, was that crossing a Vulcan line?" Trip asked.**

 **"Koss recognizes that ours is not a traditional marriage," T'Pol said as she looked into his eyes.**

 **"Okay," Trip nodded, unsure of what message she was trying to convey.**

 **"I spent two weeks at the university seeking a cure for Pa'nar after our wedding," T'Pol explained.**

 **"Okay, but once you were cured..." Trip felt incredibly awkward talking about T'Pol having sex with her new husband but there was something niggling at the back of his mind that made him continue.**

 **"Trip," she said as she took his hand. "I don't ever intend to have sexual relations with Koss or anyone else."**

 **"What?!" He asked confused.**

 **Just then his communicator beeped.**

 **"Tucker," Trip said annoyed, not taking his eyes off T'Pol while his brain spun with all this crazy knowledge that didn't add up.**

 **It was his first officer Mohamed. "We need to get back on Pulsar and Minister Fav would like to talk to you before we leave. "**

 **"Shit," Trip muttered.**

 **He looked at T'Pol and closed his eyes.**

 **"I'll be right there," he said before he turned off his comm.**

 **"Okay, we don't have a hell of a lot of time, what exactly do you mean T'Pol?" He asked anxiously.**

 **"I told you it was a marriage in name only," T'Pol said. "That is exactly what i meant. "**

 **"So you and Koss will be married for 100 years and never...? I don't..." Trip asked as he massaged his temple.**

 **"You and i are bondmates," T'Pol said quietly. "I can't be with anyone but you. i don't want to be with anyone but you "**

 **"What?!" Trip asked.**

 **Just then his comm activated again.**

 **"Captain?" Mohamed asked.**

 **"I'm coming!" Trip snapped before he turned off his communicator.**

 **"You married Koss!" Trip snapped.**

 **"In name on..."**

 **"Fuck that in name only shit!" He yelled. "You married another man in front of me, but now you're telling me you only want to be with me and we're some kind of bond...?"**

 **" Bondmates," T'Pol explained as she hustled him toward the exit. "You are needed Captain."**

 **"T'Pol..." He begged for an explanation.**

 **"I will call you tomorrow when we break orbit and you can ask your questions then," she said as she man-handled the confused Captain down a series of hallways toward the reception. "I thought i was clear on Vulcan, but when i returned to Enterprise and you were gone..."**

 **Trip stopped them just outside the reception and pulled her into a corner. He placed his hands on her shoulders. "You broke my heart, T'Pol."**

 **Her eyes dropped to the ground and she spoke very quietly. "I have come to realize that recently. I'm sorry. "**

 **"Captain!" Mohamed called to him anxiously from the door to the reception hall. Trip could see Minister Fav approaching behind him. He couldn't get caught with T'Pol in a dark corner with his hands on her.**

 **"Call me tomorrow because i have a lot of questions and you owe me answers," Trip said before he quickly kissed the top of her head and walked into the reception.**

"So, i take there are more symptoms?" Carol asked as she sat him down and placed ice on his hand.

"Sexual urges like i haven't had since i was a teenager," Trip said. "A Mensa woman looked kinda like T'Pol and i started to...imagine... if, you know what i mean. "

She nodded.

"How have you been dealing with these urges?" She asked.

He gave her a knowing look.

"Oh, good," She smiled.

"And not to go into detail, but when T'Pol was on board a few days ago it was...different. "

She looked at him confused.

He turned 5 shades of red.

"More driven, even a little...rough," Trip said awkwardly. "I chalked it up to missing her and it being 5 months, but now that i know..."

"Pon farr is very... animalistic," Carol supplied. "How many times did you engage in sexual relations while you were together? How many hours...?"

"She was on board about 5 hours and, with completion on my part?" Trip asked as he looked at her.

Carol nodded.

"Three times," Trip said. "There were other things too, but 3 times i orgasmed inside her. "

"That's quite a lot for such a short period of time," Carol smiled at him.

"I even got in a tour and lunch," Trip chuckled at the absurdity of it all as he wiped some sweat from his forehead. "God, why didn't we know something was up?"

"Neither of you are 100% on this condition and in a human - Vulcan relationship no one would know if pon farr was even possible. "

Trip nodded.

"I'm sure Phlox will be checking her for pregnancy and..."

"I'm on birth control and so is she," Trip explained.

"Like all things with this situation, no one knows what will happen," Carol explained. "Pon farr is, typically, when Vulcan women become fertile and pregnancy usually occurs. Even if there is contraception present."

"Oh," Trip frowned.

"Captain?"

"We'd just decided not to have kids a few days ago," Trip said unsure. "I guess the decision might have already been made for us. "

"There are options," Carol offered.

"Yeah, i know," Trip sighed. "It's easy to decide no children when there isn't a child. It's a lot harder of there is. "

Carol nodded. The room was quiet for a moment.

"Captain?" Mavis called over the comm.

"Tucker here," Trip replied as he stood to leave.

"We have the Enterprise hailing us for a private comm link," Mavis explained. "I'll send it to your ready room?"

"Yeah Mavis I'll be right there," Trip said before he had need three doctor the ice pack. "I'll keep you updated. "

"Captain," she said as she approached him with a hyposptay. "Just a mild one?"

Trip nodded and felt some relief wash over him before he left.

He walked quickly to his ready room and say down opening the link. He expected to see T'Pol but he got Jon.

"So i hear we need to rendezvous?" Jon asked.

"Sorry about this," Trip sighed. "It's going to screw with my chances of getting T'Pol on NX3, if they even let me have it after this."

"Oh, you're getting that ship and T'Pol will serve with you if i have anything to do with it," Jon said with a smile.

Trip looked at him confused.

"Where's T'Pol?" Trip asked. "How's she doing?"

"She's meditating in her quarters and Phlox has confined her there until we meet up. She's mildly sedated. "

"I'm getting very strong feelings from her," Trip said. "Someone keeping an eye on her?"

"Phlox has a monitor, don't worry," Jon smiled.

"I can't help it," Trip sighed.

"i know. Now, our sensor array is malfunctioning and there's a nebula that is performing rather strangely around Vulcan that we need to study. Could i ask that our science officer joins your ship to use your array for a few days to study this phenomenon?"

Trip looked at him confused.

"Captain?" Trip asked.

"We could really use your help and Starfleet has granted permission for this rendevous... in the name of science, of course. "

"Holy shit," Trip said as realization hit him. They could dock, deal with the pon farr, and no one would be the wiser.

"I'm sure she'd need my assistance to get the array configured accurately," Trip said with a smirk.

"I'd advise you place your first officer in charge while you work on this very important scientific study," Jon said confidently. "You do have a lab you could close off?"

"I do," Trip nodded. "I'll get everything set up."

"We'll rendevous in 3 days," Jon said with a quiet smile. "Hopefully everyone can hold on until then. "

"I think so," Trip smiled at his friend. "Thanks, Jon. "

"That's what friends are for, Trip," Jon said before he broke the comm link.

Trip immediately started to put a plan on place and as he thought about T'Pol and her needs her got more and more aroused. He looked down at his tented pants and sighed.

He rose from his chair and walked into his small washroom. He needed to take care of that before he talked with Mohamed.


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note: Bold=flashback**

 **XXX**

"Thank you both for coming," Trip said as he raised a glass and toasted his two guests. "I'm sure we can reach some kind of understanding."

"There is no understanding to be had," Captain Kiv said seriously. "We will either deposit the Mensa and humans on Minutia Moon or Enterprise, the decision is yours Captain Tucker."

"Now hold on..." Trip started as he re-positioned his body. Adana's revealing outfit and her resemblance to T'Pol were causing a different kind of reaction in him.

"And we choose to travel on Pulsar, as we are sure, their policies will not be as...restrictive as the Vulcans," Adana piped up.

"Now, we haven't agreed to take you, nor has the High Command got back to me about..."

" I assure you, the High Command will not deviate from the instructions they gave me," Kiv said as he reached for his salad.

Trip knew that was probably true, and his orders from Starfleet were to transport the Mensa and humans to their colony of choice if no deal with the Vulcans could be struck. But that would mean cramped conditions in his ship for a week, coinciding with pon farr, the sexual escapades of their guests, and a Captain that was out of communication with the rest of his ship for days while he screwed his wife senseless and pretended to study a nebula. No, nothing could possibly go wrong there!

"Nor do we wish to be left on Minutia Moon," Adana said before she reached for a bun and started to calmly butter it.

Trip had researched this hippie group a little and discovered that they all came from incredibly wealthy families. Their entitled, petulant attitudes were, therefore, not surprising.

"My ship is rendevousing with Enterprise in 3 days for a scientific mission and we cannot transport 21 refugees to their colony at this time!" Trip said, his anger getting the better of him. "And I don't have room for 21 individuals on my ship, but the Shira does!

"Captain, are you alright?" Adana asked as she grasped his arm. It caused a fire deep within his loins and he pulled away so forcefully he knocked the chair down behind him. It was either that or try and fuck her on top of the table. T'Pol would not appreciate that last option.

"Captain?" Kiv asked.

"I'm sorry," Trip apologized, his chest heaving and his eyes wild. "I'm not feeling well."

He sat down heavily in his chair and closed his eyes. Kiv looked at him strangely and shook his head. His reaction was so... extreme, Trip was immediately embarrassed.

"Perhaps we should retire?" Kiv asked as he stood. "I'll tell the Mensa to prepare to board your ship as of 08:00 hours. "

"Fine," Trip sighed, resigned to his fate. He took a big drink of water and tried to not look at Adana. Hell, even her feet looked sexy. He thought he was only supposed to be attracted to T'Pol during pon farr. Whatever was going on, it was getting worse.

"I'll notify my people," Adana said standing to leave.

"I apologize for my outburst," Trip said as he met her eyes briefly. He willed his body to calm down, if only for a moment. "I'll make arrangements for your people."

"No harm was caused," She smiled at him and touched his shoulder.

Trip flinched at contact and took a deep cleansing breath so he wouldn't do something he would regret. He was rock hard in his uniform.

"I will greet you tomorrow and go over the logistics," Trip managed through gritted teeth as he looked at the wall behind her.

"I look forward to it," She smiled knowingly at him.

He looked quickly at her eyes, she could tell the effect she'd had in him and that scared the shit out of him. Kiv and Adana exited his personal dining room and Trip dropped his head onto the table, banging it a few times for effect.

"Tucker to Pennington," he said with a muffled voice as he touched the comm. "Please come to my personal dining room."

 **It was Pulsar's first shore leave in the nine months he'd been Captain, and Trip was excited to be back on Vulcan. T'Pol' s fake marriage to Koss was over, Enterprise was docked just off planet for four days of his leave and he and T'Pol were going to her mother's place to vacation together.**

 **Trip had a hop in his step and joy in his heart as he disembarked his ship leaving repairs in the capable hands of Javier. Dr Carol**  
 **Pennington, and other crew who had family on Vulcan, had left as soon as the Pulsar docked, but as Captain he had some obligations and duties before he went on leave. So 14 hours after more than half his crew went on leave, Trip was finally clocking out for a few days.**

 **T'Pol was already at her mother's, had been for 3 days, and they were going to finally have some time alone. Real time alone. Not a call, not a discussion at an event, not a quick transport to her ship for a few hours, not a white space visit. Days together. Waking with her in his arms, going to sleep with her in his bed. It was as close to heaven as he could get right now.**

 **He'd also just received his first delay report about the NX-3. It was going to be two months past the schedule so it wouldn't be sixteen months on Pulsar, it would be at least eighteen. Serving on the same ship as her was looking more and more distant.**

 **Trip didn't even mind the hot Vulcan land transport or the Vulcans on board who crinkled their noses when he sat near them. Hell, he didn't even mind that he was the last frigging stop on the three hour shuttle. He just wanted to see T'Pol.**

 **What he saw when it dropped him off in front of her mother's place, was a whole heap of Vulcans in her garden. Trip looked around, it was the right house.**

 **"Excuse me, do you know where T'Pol is?" Trip asked the nearest male Vulcan.**

 **"Who are you?" He asked, standing to bar Trip's entrance into the house.**

 **Trip realized, in that moment as he stood before this man in casual civilian clothes with a bag in his hand, that he might look like a lost tourist.**

 **"I'm Captain Charles Tucker," Trip said standing a little taller. "And you are?"**

 **"Trip!" T'Pol called to him as she walked into the garden.**

 **"Who are all these people?" Trip asked confused.**

 **"These are my...clan members," T'Pol said as she pulled him away from her cousin. "I'm sorry. "**

 **"Why the hell are they here?" Trip asked as he ctaned his neck and spotted more Vulcans inside.**

 **"My aunt discovered I was home yesterday, and there were relatives visiting from the other side of Vulcan..." T'Pol hedged. "It was only logical they visit my mother's home, as it is the largest. "**

 **"Logical? You mean they're staying?" Trip asked.**

 **"Only for two days," T'Pol said as she shifted before him.**

 **"No, T'Pol," Trip whined. "You can't be serious. "**

 **"I didn't know until a few hours ago and you were on a transport. I didn't want to upset you. "**

 **"I felt you blocking me, this is why?" He asked softly.**

 **"Yes," T'Pol sighed. "Culturally, I cannot refuse to host them."**

 **"Do they know about me, about us?" Trip asked.**

 **"They are distant relatives," T'Pol hedged.**

 **"So that's a big 'No'?" Trip asked as he placed his hands on his hips and looked at her annoyed.**

 **"No," T'Pol admitted, sadly.**

 **In that moment, he was, yet again, saddened by how far they'd come and how quickly they went three steps back. But, he truly did understand that these relatives, as intrusive as they were, were not her choice and there was little she could do to help the situation for them. He loved her too much to make this situation worse than it already was.**

 **"Okay, I'll go find a Vulcan hotel, I guess, or maybe Starfleet has a room... I'll figure something out. I'll need a transport and..." Trip started with a sigh. "You know, I'm just sick of hiding. I love you T'Pol, and I want everyone to know that and..."**

 **"Come with me," T'Pol said as she grabbed his hand and walked him to the centre of her mother's garden.**

 **"T'Pol?" Trip asked, confused.**

 **All her Vulcan relatives noticed her action and the man whose hand she was holding and stopped speaking.**

 **"This is Captain Charles Tucker, and he is my mate," T'Pol said her voice strong. "If you wish to stay here you will acknowledge him as such, or you are free to leave."**

 **Trip stood next to T'Pol dumbfounded. Had she really done what he thought she'd done? He knew their relationship was strong, which was why he was willing to leave with little fuss, but her open declaration? That was quite the big Vulcan step on her behalf.**

 **Immediately, the cousin who had blocked his way stepped forward and extended a hand. Trip took it.**

 **"Nice to meet you Captain Tucker," he said. Then relative after relative nodded at Trip or told him to live long and prosper.**

 **Only T'Pol's aunt told her she was a disgrace to her family and promptly left with her husband and grandchildren. Apparently, Vulcans on the other side of the planet weren't as judgmental of humans.**

 **The next two days went surprisingly well for a Vulcan family reunion. Trip was acknowledged as a joint host and treated very respectfully by all the visiting relatives. He got to go to bed with T'Pol each night and wake with her at 4 am each morning. It wasn't perfect, they didn't make love once, but they were together and he had the opportunity to meet some relatives of hers he actually did like.**

 **On the last day everyone was there, one of her uncle's approached Trip.**

 **"Would you and T'Pol like a formal ceremony?" he asked.**

 **"We haven't really spoken about it, yet," Trip admitted. They had talked about marrying, eventually, but not necessarily on Vulcan.**

 **"If you do, I would be honored to perform the ceremony before we leave," He told Trip before he exited the kitchen.**

 **Surprised by the offer, Trip walked intro their room and found T'Pol meditating. As much as their existence these last six months had been strange, not being on the same ship and trying to repair their relationship while she was technically still married for three months, it was better. They talked more, communicated better, and their surity in each other was apparent. They had talked about getting married, just not so quickly.**

 **"Your uncle offered to marry us," Trip said excitedly, breaking her meditation. "It would have to be before they left."**

 **"Do you want that?" T' as she sat and looked at him.**

 **"I like the idea," Trip admitted. "We'll have to do something official on earth for my parents and Starfleet when we're ready, but I like that we do this with your relatives. It's sooner than we talked about, but I don't know, as soon as he offered, it felt right."**

 **"Tell him I agree then," T'Pol said about to shut her eyes and return to her meditation. Her decision was simple; she would commit herself to Trip under any circumstances.**

 **"Do you have a dress? Anything else you need? He asked. She could hear the anxious excitement in his voice.**

 **"I only have the dress I married Koss in," she said sadly. Suddenly, she felt the burden of her first marriage weigh on her.**

 **"I'd rather you marry me naked or in your uniform than that!" Trip blurted with a chuckle.**

 **"Perhaps one of my cousins has something appropriate?" T'Pol inquired. She wanted this wedding to be nothing like her wedding to Koss; they'd also need to marry in one of her mother's smaller gardens.**

 **"Do I need to do anything but fumble through Vulcan vows?" Trip chuckled.**

 **T'Pol opened her eyes, he didn't speak Vulcan, or at least very good Vulcan, and the vows were complicated...**

 **"You should probably practice, but we could get my uncle to say them first and you repeat them one phrase at a time," T'Pol said thoughtfully. "It's not traditional but..."**

 **"Neither are we," he smiled at her.**

 **"No, we are not," she said as she gazed at him.**

 **"It won't embarrass you?" Trip asked suddenly self conscious of how he may butcher the Vulcan language in front of her family. He had actually learned a lot of Vulcan in the last nine months on board Pulsar, as they patrolled between Earth and Vulcan, but his southern accent meant the pronunciation of certain words would always sound...off.**

 **T'Pol rose from her spot of meditation and took his hands on hers looking intently into his eyes. "I will always be proud of you."**

 **Trip leaned down and kissed her softly on the lips.**

 **"And I will be proud to be your husband," he said as they parted. She gave him a small smile only he got to see, and he knew, after everything they'd been though, this was exactly right.**

 **That evening, before her uncle left, they were married in a Vulcan commitment ceremony in another one of her mother's gardens. T'Pol wore her cousins yellow dress and Trip wore her father's robes. His Vulcan was adequate and his pronunciation of some more challenging words was impressive for her relatives. And, after they said goodbye to her family, their two - day honeymoon began.**

"Well, you may be the first documented case of human pon farr so no one really knows how you'll react," Carol said as she gave him another sedative. "But you are right, once bound, Vulcan mates usually only long for each other. Even if a substitute is needed for pon farr because a mate is unavailable, hallucinogenic teas are used to somewhat 'trick' the Vulcan going through pon farr to have sex with someone who isn't their bondmate. It's fascinating, actually..."

"I was thinking Adana looked like T'Pol, could that be it?" Trip asked as he drank more water and loosened his collar. It was so damn hot everywhere.

"Well, your not trying to jump me, so that might have something to do with it," Catol chuckled.

"I almost did grab her," Trip admitted sadly. " I could see it in my head, but I was barely able to stop myself. I think that makes me a danger to other women on board."

"I wouldn't go that far," Carol chuckled until she saw the dark look he gave her; he was serious.

"Maybe we up your sedation schedule and you stay away from that Mensa woman," she suggested.

"Doc, they were going at it in pairs and groups all over the Vulcan ship, what can we do to contain them?" The strain in his voice spoke of a man on the edge of losing it.

Carol thought for a minute then smiled. "You're preparing Cargo 2 to house them?"

Trip nodded.

"There's a Vulcan microbe that is usually harmless and present on all Vulcan ships," Carol smirked. "As medical officer I could declare that the microbe, in such a large quantity traveling on so many people, could pose a threat to our environment and they would need to be contained in Cargo 2 for the duration of our trip with decon protocols for anyone who came in contact with them."

"I'd kiss you if I wasn't so worried I'd hurt you!" Trip whooped as he stood. "That's brilliant. A pain in the ass for decon procedures, and we'll have to hose down and fully sanatize Cargo 2 after they leave, but it'll keep them contained!"

"Glad I could help," Carol smiled. "I'll file the quarentine paperwork in the morning. But right now, I'd like your assistance in getting to three bottom of these urges. "

Trip swallowed hard and turned red.

"Would you normally find the Mensa woman attractive?"

"Possibly, but the horns on one side are a little freaky. I think it was because she looked like T'Pol...sort of," Trip offered.

"Who else do you find attractive on board this ship?"

Trip looked at her uncomfortable.

"I won't tell," Carol smiled at him.

"I've uh... I've always thought Cybil Vicks was very striking. And Hassina Abdul," Trip admitted hesitantly. "But I'm technically married to..."

"Yes, I know, I'm married too, but it doesn't mean I don't enjoy looking at Javier in senior staff meetings," she smiled at him. "Let me try something."

She called the women to the captain's private dining room under the guise of scheduling a medical evaluation that Captain Tucker noted was missing from their files. Trip sat with a file folder before him trying to look like he was merely clearing up some paperwork while Carol took out her PADD and scheduled the appointment. Not once, despite his fear that he'd be a danger to these women, did Trip feel the urge to fuck them senseless.

"Interesting," Carol said after the second woman left and there was no reaction from the Captain. "Giovana Cellini has a similar coloring and body type to T'Pol but you don't find her attractive?"

"She's very...loud and pushy," Trip said as he cringed. "She may be tall and lean and bronze like T'Pol, but her personality..."

Carol called her to the dining room under the same falsehood and there was still no reaction from Trip. She'd had a very powerful sedative ready for each encounter just in case he did react. Thankfully, she didn't have to use it.

"Maybe doubling down on sedatives is the trick," Trip said happily as they rose to leave. Knowing he wasn't a sexual predator gave him a great deal of relief.

"Possibly," Carol said as she raked her brain for other possibilities. "No contact with the Mensa woman unless you want a very angry Vulcan docking with us in three days. "

"Agreed," Trip smiled at her before they parted ways.


	5. Chapter 5

**Author Note: Italics=a memory from the past. Please see notes in Chapter 1.**

XXX

"Captain Tucker!" Admiral Pine greeted him happily on the other side of the sub space message. "I apologize for the early call, but I hear your visitors are joining Pulsar today?"

It was 06:00 hours and Trip had hardly slept all night. Visions of T'Pol and any woman he'd ever been sexually involved with had played like a constant film in his mind all night. At 04:00 he'd finally taken another shower and decided to dress and get some coffee to start his day. The Admiral seemed incredibly shocked to find him in uniform and amidst paperwork in his ready room at 06:00 when the call came in. It made Trip look like an incredibly committed Captain.

"Yes, as you know, the Vulcans could not be persuaded," Trip said with a grimace. He pulled at the collar of his shirt, he'd got engineering to lower the temperature in his quarters and ready room to a cool 10 degrees but still found himself uncomfortable.

"We didn't expect you to work a miracle there Trip but it was worth a try," Admiral Pine smiled at him. "No, the reason I'm calling so early is so you hear something before it hits the news today. "

Trip just nodded and waited for him to continue.

"We're announcing your Captaincy for NX-3 first thing this morning and..."

"Admiral," Trip smiled.

"Sorry, it's taken so long, but with all the shield issues..."

"I've been keeping up with the reports," Trip smiled. "When will she launch?"

He had been the Captain of Pulsar for 19 months of what was supposed to have been a 16-month posting. Fredericks took her 16 months leave and Trip thought he'd be re-posted so she could have her ship back, but she was pregnant again and decided to take a posting on Earth to be close to her family. So, he'd remained on Pulsar and that made him quite happy. He liked his crew and his ship.

"Well, the latest estimate is 6 months from now," Admiral Pine sighed. "We'll need you on board in 4 months for the final tests and crew selection."

"Yes, I've got some ideas of people I'd like, can I start to put out feelers to see if they're interested?" Trip asked. He was not going to mention T'Pol right away.

Immediately, at the thought of her, an image of them having sex in her shower on board Enterprise two days before they left for Vulcan and, sadly, her marriage to Koss, entered his head. She had practically scaled him with her long, wet, naked legs and...

"Wait a few days until the announcements have made the rounds," Admiral Pine smiled at him interrupting the erotic thoughts that were causing his pants to grow tight. "You can't have Ncumbe though, he's going to be promoted to Captain of the Pulsar. I trust you can handle the promotion news and paperwork for him?"

"I couldn't have chosen a better person to hand Pulsar over to," Trip smiled. "He'll be a fine Captain. "

"Agreed," Admiral Pine nodded. "Good luck with the Mensa. Prime Colony 1 is expecting you in a week. "

"Let's hope its uneventful," Trip chuckled. "Thank you for the great news this morning Admiral, I'm honoured. "

"The paperwork should be through now so get it signed and back to us so our PR people can say you've officially accepted the position. Well deserved Captain Tucker, we're proud to have you as our next NX Captain. "

The Admiral ended the transmission and Trip opened his inbox. The official papers were there. As advanced as technology was, Starfleet still liked paper hand-signed versions for their official records. So, Trip printed it off and smiled. He needed T'Pol to be present when he sighed them. He placed a call to her quarters knowing she'd be awake.

He had been told to avoid contact with her until they were together but he needed to check in on her and he couldn't imagine not having her present when he accepted the NX-3 Captain position. He realized as he waited for it to go through, he probably should have taken care of the bulge in his pants first.

A sweaty panting wife greeted him on the link. She was wearing her tight, small, lilac silk pajamas.

"How are you doing darlin'?" He asked as he looked at her.

"I'm managing," T'Pol said as she touched the screen. "You look well."

"I got engineering to make my quarters and ready room into an ice box," Trip smirked. "Still feels hotter than hell. "

"Phlox said you're being mildly sedated because you are showing abnormal attraction to some other females?" She asked, anger in her voice. He could see her undulating her hips as she spoke with him.

"Yeah, about that," Trip hedged. "I'm not sure..."

"If it is too much for you," She began as she rubbed a palm across her bare stomach. "It's culturally acceptable for you to take a substitute until I'm available. I would... "

"Now hold on a second, no one's taking any substitutes!" Trip said with a raised voice. "We're in this together and there's no room for anyone else. "

"I only want you," T'Pol said as she started to massage her breast under her shirt. "But if you desire..."

"Fuck T'Pol," he gasped as she pulled at her nipple and let out a soft moan. " Shit, just a..."

Trip bolted for his washroom and got his uniform down just in time for him to ejaculate into his toilet. As waves of passion rolled over him, he heard T'Pol breathing heavily on the monitor. He could only imagine what she was doing now. Once done, he zipped up his uniform and returned to his chair to see that her hands were no longer under her shirt but had drifted south. If he didn't get things under control they'd both be naked soon.

"I need you to focus T'Pol," Trip said calmly. "I wanted you to be here when I signed my NX-3 papers."

Suddenly she seemed to snap out of her erotic movements and looked at him.

"What?"

"It's official once I sign this," Trip smiled. "I'm on board in 4 months and she launches in 6, hopefully."

"Trip," she said contentedly as she looked at him. "Finally. "

Trip took out a pen and smiled at her. "I need you out there with me T'Pol. Jon and I are going to be lobbying hard for your transfer and I'm not taking 'no ' for an answer from anyone. It's no adventure without you."

"T'hy'la, I am so proud of you," T'Pol said honestly. "I can't wait to be with you again."

She watched as he signed the papers, scanned them, and sent them through to Starfleet.

"You and me baby," Trip smiled up at her as he started to notice her hands wander again. "Let me call you back from my quarters in one minute and see if I can't help you out."

She nodded and swallowed hard.

"And I want to be perfectly clear. I may be having some strange attraction to certain women who aren't you, but I'm not doing anything with anyone but you. If Carol must tie me down or give me high dose tranquilizers, I'll do it. I'm not going to do anything to risk my marriage to you. Got that?"

T'Pol nodded and gave him a small smile.

"I'll call you back in a minute," Trip said before he ended the call. Captains had a personal line in their quarters for private calls, like this. Not that Starfleet recorded all transmissions and studied them, but it was better to be safe than sorry. Trip left his ready room and made a beeline for his quarters.

 _"What do you mean exactly?" Trip asked the Vulcan Minister Fav. He was on video call._

 _"She is rebelling against her mother and acting on a very un-Vulcan manner," Minister Fav explained. "I have not asked for Vulcan assistance because of the shame her behavior would bring to our family. "_

 _"But she's betrothed to this guy? And she actually likes him?" Trip asked._

 _"Apparently, they have been planning this for weeks before the ceremony," Minister Fav explained._

 _"She's an adult, and he's an adult, and if they want to live on earth and have an earth ceremony..."_

 _"It is unacceptable," Minister Fav explained. "If you could just intercept her ship so I could speak with her..."_

 _Trip sighed and rubbed his 5 o'clock shadow._

 _"I can intercept them but I can't promise anything," Trip said with a sigh. "I'm assuming this is under the radar?"_

 _Minister Fav looked at him confused._

 _"No official reports?"_

 _"I cannot logically ask you to break protocol but..."_

 _"But I will," Trip sighed._

 _One month into his Captaincy of Pulsar he had come to realize that Vulcan relations were more complicated then they appeared. He knew that from his experience with T'Pol, but he didn't realize how wide spread their denial of basic truths went._

 _"Thank you, Captain," Minister Fav nodded across the airwaves before the call ended._

 _Trip scrubbed his face and walked onto his bridge. "Set a course for the coordinates I've just sent you Mavis. Warp 3."_

 _"Yes sir," Mavis smiled._

 _"The change?" Mohamed asked._

 _"We're doing a Vulcan father an unofficial favor," Trip sighed as he sat in his chair and watched the tiny ship in the distance start to get larger. He explained the favor to his crew and waited until they were within easy communication range._

 _"This is Captain Charles Tucker of the Starfleet Pulsar," Trip said as a man and a woman appeared in the large video screen. "I have been asked to intercept you, as a favor. "_

 _"My father?" The Vulcan woman asked._

 _"Afraid so," Trip said. "I told him it was up to you to decide if you wanted to speak with him, but if you don't, we'll be in our way. "_

 _"May we dock with you temporarily?" The male Vulcan asked. Trip noted the shocked expression the female Vulcan tried to repress._

 _"Dock 1," Trip indicated as Javier started the procedure. "I'll meet you at the airlock. "_

 _Trip ended the communication and looked at his crew._

 _"Was it me or did Romeo seem quite pleased we intercepted them?" Javier asked._

 _"Very observant," Trip nodded. "I caught that too. Mavis?"_

 _"She was surprised he asked to dock," Mavis nodded. "I think she's more interested in leaving than he is. "_

 _"We'll find out soon enough," Trip sat back in his chair. "Let me know when they're docked and I'll make my way to the airlock."_

 _Several minutes later Trip came face to face with the runaway lovers and it was clear from the moment they walked on Pulsar that the woman was not pleased. T'Pol used to get the same look on her face when she was angry._

 _"Welcome aboard the Pulsar, I'm Captain Tucker," Trip said as he gave them the traditional Vulcan hand gesture._

 _The woman reached out her hand._

 _"I'm T'Dar and this is my mate Wel," She said confidently. "I apologize for my father's orders."_

 _"Oh they weren't orders ma'am," Trip said with a smile as he started to walk them toward his dining room. "He just seemed, well, upset and I thought it was the decent thing to help him out. "_

 _"Oh," she looked confused. "My father usually uses his considerable power and influence to get his way. "_

 _"I do know who your father is, and I easily could have refused, but if I was your dad, I'd also want an explanation," Trip explained kindly as they entered the dining room. "Tea?"_

 _They both nodded and took their seats._

 _"We just want to live on Earth without the repression and obligations of Vulcan. Do you know much about the culture?"_

 _Trip cleared his throat and nodded. "I was very good friends with a Vulcan for years, so I have some idea."_

 _"We don't want to live with his family for a year, I want to keep my job on earth and..."_

 _"You have to live with his family? I thought it was just live together while the bond, uh, forms over the first year of marriage," Trip stammered._

 _"No, the female joins the male's clan and his mother also teaches her the history of the clan over the year. They are expected to travel as a couple to visit sacred lands, visit with other family, and spend a great deal of time with elders. "_

 _"Oh, that does seem like quite the commitment," Trip agreed._

 _"I'd lose my job and I love being a researcher," T'Dar explained._

 _"And what do you do?" Trip asked Wel._

 _"I'm an attaché to Minister Fav," Wel said softly._

 _"So, what will you do on earth?" Trip asked._

 _"I don't know," he admitted._

 _"He's a very talented ambassador, I'm sure..." T'Dar started._

 _"Not without your father's recommendations," he interrupted._

 _"He'll give them," T'Dar said._

 _"I'm not sure," Wel sighed._

 _"Can't... can't Vulcans make their own rules for their marriages? My friend, she married but didn't stay on Vulcan," Trip explained._

 _They both looked at him shocked._

 _"I have never heard of such an arrangement, have you?" Wel asked T'Dar._

 _"Never," she said wide eyed. "It would bring great shame on both families. For a man to do it is hardly acceptable, but a woman...? No. Are you sure?"_

 _"She was married and two weeks later, left," Trip explained. He didn't want to go into many revealing details to protect T'Pol's privacy. "I thought it was not so unusual."_

 _"What was her reason?" Wel asked._

 _"Work, like T'Dar," Trip explained._

 _"No one would ever agree to that," T'Dar explained. "Was she bound to another? Insane?"_

 _"She wasn't either," Trip said knowing T'Pol wasn't already married or nuts. T'Pol had explained her marital arrangements as common and suddenly he was realizing how different they were. "What I'm saying, is that if she could do it differently, maybe you can as well. It's worth a try. "_

 _They both nodded and Wel looked at T'Dar._

 _"I will speak with my father," she said._

 _An hour later their ship left to return to Vulcan. They'd struck a deal to marry on Vulcan, live together in earth, and come back to Vulcan for a month each year to fulfill their family obligations. Minister Fav was going to pull some strings and get Wel a job at the embassy on earth._

 _Trip was quite pleased with his negotiation skills but T'Pol's situation still sat heavily on his mind. She'd lied to him about the nature of her marriage and deal with Koss and he wasn't sure why. Then there was the mysterious P'nar syndrome he'd been contacted about a couple of weeks ago…it was all a little too strange._

"You there T'Pol?" Trip asked as the screen came to life.

She was panting on the other side and he was hard, yet again. He knew Starfleet hadn't intended the private line for this purpose but desperate times…

"Okay, let's see if I can help you out," Trip smiled as he leans toward his screen.

XXX

Trip had sent Mohamed to deal with the Mensa and humans that were joining him, to say that they were displeased being contained to a cargo bay was an understatement. Trip's crew had outfitted it with cots, bedding, two complete washrooms, and a large living room. Considering the tight timelines, he was proud of what they'd accomplished.

"She keeps calling asking for you," Javier said annoyed.

"And keep telling her I am indisposed," Trip snapped a little harshly. He was no going anywhere near Adana after his last couple of reactions.

"Javier, you have the bridge," Trip said before he left the bridge. His temper was getting the better of him more and more and his crew was getting annoyed with him. He needed to go for a walk, see how things were going in the lab…fuck, he just needed to get away from people for a bit.

After his call with T'Pol this morning, he'd felt sense of relief, for about an hour. Then he had started to feel more on edge as the day progressed. Perhaps he should see Carol for another sedative?

"Captain, I have cleared the lab and…" Miranda Bilson said as she approached the Captain outside of the medical clinic.

Trip suddenly felt awash with sexual attraction and stepped toward her. It was as if she was a magnet, drawing him in. Trip noticed her deep-set green eyes, her soft pale skin, and her long eyelashes as if it was his first time seeing her. The Ensign's skin seemed to glow in this light and her voice sounded soft and sweet. How had he not noticed this before?

"Ensign?" He asked as he leaned into her frame slightly noting that her breasts seemed small in her uniform and her shoulders a little soft. He immediately imagined unzipping her uniform to see what secrets lay beneath it. He could see some small delicate hairs curling at the base of her hair and thought how wonderful it would be to kiss them and lick them back in place.

"I've cleared the lab for your experiment and the equipment that Doctor Pennington packed has arrived but I was instructed to not unpack it," she said as she looked at him strangely; he was sniffing the air. "I could unpack it, if that would help."

"No, just leave it," Trip said softly as he leaned heavily against a bulk head and therefore even closer to her. He noted that she didn't pull away and smiled slightly. He was trying to think of where her quarters were on this deck and if his were closer. "Is this your first mission?"

"Uh, yeah, I…I'm quite happy with my choice," Miranda said as she smiled up as him and licked her lips. He was even more attractive up close.

Trip looked at her moist lips and couldn't focus on anything else but kissing them, thoroughly. He noted her flushed cheeks and her breasts standing at attention before him. Trip was just about to grab her hip, and pull her in for a passionate kiss when Carol Pennington's voice woke him from his stupor.

"Captain, I need to speak with you!" Carol said sharply.

Trip felt his body cool slightly and his eyes went wide when he realized how close to the Ensign he was and how his hand was hovering in the air near her hip.

"Of…of course doc," Trip stammered as he stepped back from the Ensign. "As you were."

He quickly walked into Medical and promptly ran to the nearest sink and vomited in it; his reaction to what he almost did was that visceral.

"I'm sorry," he mumbled through bouts of sickness. "I was about to…if you hadn't…"

"It was pretty clear what you were about to do, but why her?" Carol Pennington asked as she handed him a towel. "Maybe your pon farr is gaining strength and changing or…"

"She likes me," he said as he wiped his mouth and leaned heavily against the counter, his head down. "I think I picked up on her…interest and accessibility. Maybe it was the same for Adana?"

"It's a good theory, and better than anything else I could think of," Carol said as she crossed her arms over her chest. "But it makes this a whole hell of a lot more complicated."

"Why? We know the cause!" Trip said as he looked at her, his voice with a lot of edge.

"You may sense some females and males who are attracted to you, but not all. And if you pick up on their attraction and respond to it…"

"Good point," Trip nodded, desperate. "What the fuck do I do? God, Carol, what the fuck do I do?"

"Who do you know is attracted to you?" Carol asked, trying to quell his upset. 'We all pick up on subtle hints from others."

"Bilson isn't subtle," Trip hedged as he felt another wave of nausea pass over him. "She's been batting her eyelashes at me since she came on board."

"Any others?"

"Tate in engineering," Trip said looking at her intently. "She wanted to meet privately, maybe a week after I became Captain, to discuss warp coils and I sensed…something…so I said I was really busy and couldn't meet. I sent her some files instead."

"That's it?" Carol asked surprised.

"I think so," Trip said shyly.

"I'd add Cruz from my department and possibly McKenzie from the armory team," Carol smiled at him. "Cruz talks about you all the time, to the point of annoyance, and I overheard McKenzie in the gym asking when you came to workout."

"Really?" Trip asked surprised.

"But we really can't be sure that's all of them, can we?" Carol asked with a sigh.

"If there's more I've become quite the playboy in my most recent years," Trip chuckled, uncomfortably. "I would have killed in high school to have that many women interested in me."

"And there might even be a man," Carol added.

"True. What do we do about this?" Trip asked, deperate. "Cause you can see from my reaction, to almost…with Ensign Bilson, what I think of my thoughts. If I had…"

"But you didn't," Carol mumbled. She could see the war going on inside him written all over his face; he hated what he had almost done. And, probably, there were other, more sexual ideas he'd been thinking about Ensign Bilson that he would never share. He must feel like a predatory cheating pervert.

"Put me out doc," Trip said with a shake of his head, the upset not even hidden in his voice. "I won't be a threat to these women and I will not risk my relationship with T'Pol."

"Let's see if we can do something not so dramatic," Carol said as she patted his shoulder.


	6. Chapter 6

Author's Note: Please see notes in chapter 1. All italics are a flashback. All bold indicates a shared mind-space.

XXX

"Congratulations Ncumbe," Trip said with a smile as he shook the other man's hand. "I couldn't think of a more qualified or deserving man."

Mohamed Ncumbe shook his hand smiling. He was hoping he'd get promoted soon, but didn't expect it today.

"I will do my very best with her, sir," Mohamed said as they broke their handshake.

"There's a Starfleet tradition that involves a party when someone gets promoted to Captain, but I'm afraid with our extra passengers we're going to have to hold off on that until we drop them off," Trip said as he sat down in his Captain's chair.

"Sir, I don't need…" Mohamed started.

"Oh, you're getting a party Mohamed," Trip smiled up at him and gestured for him to sit as he scanned the documents and filed them with Starfleet.

"Are the rumors true about you and NX-3?" Mohamed asked.

Trip just nodded. "The official announcement should be coming down the pipes anytime now."

"Congratulations Captain Tucker, the NX-3 is…well, it's quite the promotion," Mohamed stammered. "You should be quite proud."

"I am," Trip nodded as he scanned the documents. "They told me I couldn't steal you because they were making you a Captain."

Mohamed chuckled.

"Mohamed, I know I already told you that I'm going to need you to take over Pulsar for a few days when we dock with Enterprise," Trip began. "And now I need to tell you why."

Mohamed sat up straighter in his chair, the words about to tumble from the Captain's mouth sounded like a secret mission or something.

"You know that I'm involved with Commander T'Pol, correct?" Trip asked with raised eyebrows.

"Yes," Mohamed nodded.

"And you know that Vulcans go through pon farr every seven years?" Trip asked.

Mohamed looked at him momentarily confused. Pon farr was initiated by the male in a Vulcan relationship.

"Well, apparently in a Vulcan-Human relationship a type of pon farr can still occur and currently T'Pol and I are experiencing it. It's why I've asked all the temperature controls get dropped, why I've been a son-of-a-bitch, and why Doc is partially sedating me every hour."

Mohamed looked at him both surprised and confused.

"According to Starfleet, we're docking with Enterprise for scientific exploration, but in reality…"

"You and Commander T'Pol need to complete the Pon farr," Mohamed surmised.

"We're doing all this under the radar because I don't want Starfleet to have any reason not to post her on my ship," Trip said as he rubbed at his morning stubble. "I'm hoping you can help us keep this private."

"Of course!" Mohamed said quickly.

"Thank you," Trip said as he closed his eyes and sighed.

Just then the door to his Ready room buzzed and Trip opened it with a button on his desk.

"Hey doc," Trip said as she walked into the room. "I think my alarm is about to go off."

Dr Pennington walked in and immediately started to scan him. She tilted her head in inquiry toward Mohamed and Trip nodded.

"He knows," Trip sighed.

"You haven't left the Bridge?" She asked as she gave him a hypospray.

"No, and Mohamed will escort me to my quarters when I'm done here," Trip said. "Oh, that's another thing Mohamed, I need you to escort me to my quarters and lock me in."

"Excuse me?" Mohamed asked, shocked.

"The Captain's pon farr is manifesting in an attraction to several females on board the ship and we need to protect them and him from contact," Dr Pennington explained. "Locking him in his quarters will ensure that."

"So, doc is going to say I've come down with a bad case of the flu and I'm being kept and cared for in my quarters," Trip explained. "When we dock with Enterprise I'll join T'Pol in the lab and it will be sealed until we…emerge."

"I'll unpack everything over the next couple of days and make arrangements for a stasis machine to house your food," Dr Pennington explained.

"You need to manage the Mensa people while I'm…unavailable," Trip explained. "Doc will be checking in on us in case of injury and…"

"Injury?" Mohamed asked, shocked.

"Apparently, pon farr can be…rough," Trip said as he started to turn red. "Hopefully a Human-Vulcan pon farr isn't so bad."

"I anticipate few injuries," the doctor said.

"Captain Archer knows the situation and is my best friend, he'll help you if there are any issues," Trip explained. "Rely on him if you need to. But, I need you to keep this between us, okay?"

"Absolutely, Captain," Mohamed said with a serious expression.

"And if you need anything until we dock with Enterprise, I'm available 24/7 in my quarters or over the comm," Trip explained. "I'll be writing staff evaluations."

"And resting!" Doctor Pennington piped in.

"Have you ever tried to rest in this state?!" Trip asked a little sharply. Then he closed his eyes and took a breath. "Sorry doc."

She patted him on the shoulder and gave him a small smile.

"The Pulsar is yours Mohamed, but know that I'm avail…" Trip started.

"I'll take care of her Captain," Mohamed smiled at him. "You take care of yourself."

Trip nodded and patted him on the shoulder.

"Am I good to go doc?" Trip asked.

"Commander, you and I will escort him to his quarters and if I see any reaction to a crew member, I'm prepared with a tranquilizer that will knock him out," Dr Pennington explained seriously. "I'll need you to restrain him so I can put him down."

Mohamed looked between the Captain and the doctor.

"Just do whatever she tells you, and don't worry about me," Trip said as he met his eyes, completely serious. "You do whatever you need to do to stop me if I try something."

Mohamed swallowed hard and nodded.

"Okay, let's go," Trip said as he tried to calm himself down before he walked from his ready room.

 _Trip's head was spinning. He had just boarded the Pulsar after the official opening of the Starfleet wing on Vulcan and he couldn't even focus on what Mavis was telling him from the helm._

" _I'm sorry?" Trip asked her for the second time._

" _Sir, are you alright?" Mavis asked concerned._

" _I have a slight headache," Trip explained. "Repeat it one more time."_

" _I said we need to go 30 degrees farther east because of an asteroid storm," Mavis said softly. "Am I clear to alter course?"_

" _Yes, thank you Mavis," Trip nodded from his Captain's chair._

" _Maybe you need some rest or to see the doctor?" Mavis suggested with a soft smile._

" _Maybe," Trip sighed but didn't move._

 _He sat in his Captain's chair for quite a while before he finally seemed to snap out of his stupor._

" _I'll be in my Ready Room if anyone needs me," Trip said as he hauled himself from his chair. His legs felt like lead and his brain felt foggy._

 _She was only ever with him? He was her first? He'd be her last? She was married but she and Koss weren't going to be intimate? She only wanted him? They were bonded?_

 _Trip sat down at his computer and searched the Vulcan data base for Bondmate information and came up with two references. One an ancient Vulcan text reference that appeared to be a work of fiction, and one obscure reference to a Vulcan ritual. That was it._

 _He cupped his face in his hands and just breathed in and out for a few minutes trying to think of all the possibilities in this impossible situation. If she was married, but not traditionally, could he be her lover? Did she want that? Did he? Could they be friends again, platonic friends? Does Koss know about him? About her desire for him? And why the flying fuck, hadn't she explained this before he saw her marry another man?! Trip kept thinking back to her wedding and thinking of ways he could have/should have stopped it. Maybe they'd be together now and all that heartache and gut-wrenching distress he'd felt would have been avoided._

 _He stared at the two minuscule references on his screen and decided that he needed to call in a favor. He placed a sub-space call to Earth and finally found the residence of T'Dar and Wel._

" _Captain Tucker!" T'Dar said enthusiastically. It was disconcerting to see a Vulcan express so much emotion._

" _How are you T'Dar? How's Wel?" Trip asked._

" _He's on a business trip to Paris right now, but we're quite happy," T'Dar smiled at him._

" _I just saw your father on Vulcan and he seems very pleased with your marriage," Trip said with a smile._

" _Yes, they were all pleased and the compromise is something we can all live with," T'Dar explained. "He and mother are visiting us in four months."_

" _T'Dar, I'm calling because I'm looking for some more information on a Vulcan topic that the database doesn't seem to have much on, I'm hoping you can enlighten me," Trip said, trying to sound casual._

" _I hope I can help," T'Dar said with an encouraging nod._

" _It's about bondmates," Trip said and he immediately saw her shift. "What are they?"_

" _Vulcans don't usually speak of these things," T'Dar said as she swallowed hard._

" _I'm sorry if I over-stepped," Trip immediately apologized wondering if it was something sexual that he'd inadvertently asked her about. "I don't even know what the term means."_

" _It's a telepathic link that is incredibly intimate and sometimes formed between Vulcan mates," T'Dar said as she met his eyes on the screen. "Not all Vulcan couples experience it, but I've been told that it is the ultimate form of marital satisfaction."_

 _Trip's brows furrowed; it sounded like she was talking about sex, not marriage. Like a bondmate was some whole other level of sexual satisfaction. Like when a man made a woman orgasm multiple times in one sexual act._

" _I'm sorry if I've asked about something so intimate," Trip back-peddled, worried he'd offended her._

" _No, it's just rarely discussed in a Vulcan household, and usually not with off-worlders. Couples that have a bond are mated for life," T'Dar explained. "Even across great distances they can meet in their minds and talk, interact even."_

" _So, it's intimate in the sense that it's a telepathic link, not something sexual?" Trip asked, still trying to clarify._

" _I'm sure it enhances sexual experiences, but a bondmating is an intimate mental link for a Vulcan," T'Dar explained. "Our minds, as Vulcans, are our most intimate region and to share that with someone is the ultimate act of love and trust."_

" _Are they formed purposefully?" Trip asked as he let all the information sink in._

" _No," T'Dar shook her head in the negative. "It's why they are special. If two Vulcans find each other and form a bond it's thought of as a gift from our ancestors. A blessing, in a way, on the union and the joining of the clans. It's…what you humans call, Fate."_

 _Trip swallowed hard and closed his eyes. He wanted to hear this, but he didn't. She was still married to Koss._

" _Can I inquire about the reason for these questions?" T'Dar asked._

 _Trip opened his eyes and said nothing but he felt as if she saw right through him._

" _That friend of yours who was permitted to have an unorthodox Vulcan marriage?" T'Dar asked._

 _Trip nodded._

" _She was bonded to someone else?" T'Dar asked._

 _Trip nodded again. "I think so."_

 _Her eyes went wide. "I've never heard of a bond with a human, if that's the case…well, it may be the first of it's kind and…highly unusual."_

" _I'm still trying to figure all this out T'Dar so I'd appreciate it if…"_

" _I won't even tell Wel," she nodded. "This is much too…volatile a situation between our people."_

" _Excuse me?" Trip asked confused._

" _Vulcans will not like this new form of bond," T'Dar explained. "We are a very insular people and it is an ancient ritual among our people. To know that others can participate in it…they would not be pleased."_

" _Ritual?" Trip asked._

" _To solidify the bond the bondmates need to marry and consummate the marriage. It completes the bond. An incomplete bond can…disrupt the mental capacity of each bondmate. Vulcans who cannot complete their bond with their mate have been known to go mad over time. I'm not sure if that would be the case with a human…"_

" _Over time?"_

" _Decades," T'Dar explained. "The life of a Vulcan is long."_

" _So, it's not something that requires immediate action or attention to keep her from going insane or…?"_

" _No, I'm sure it's weaker because you are human, so you probably have even longer than decades," T'Dar explained. "But humans have a much shorter life, so I wouldn't wait until you were old."_

 _Trip nodded in agreement._

" _And if she's already married to another Vulcan?" Trip asked._

" _You demonstrate the bond to him and he'll have no choice but to dissolve the marriage," T'Dar explained plainly._

" _Really?" Trip asked excitedly. "It's that easy?"_

" _I wouldn't say it was easy," T'Dar hedged. "But yes."_

" _T'Dar you've just made me a very happy man," Trip smiled at her._

 _T'Dar smiled back; it was still weird to see a Vulcan do that._

" _I am so happy I could finally do something to help you Captain," T'Dar nodded. "If you have more concerns, please contact me. And I will keep this strictly confidential."_

" _Thanks, T'Dar," Trip smiled at her. "I appreciate all this. You don't know how much I appreciate it."_

" _I think I can see that from the smile on your face," she nodded. "Good luck with her."_

" _Thanks," Trip nodded before they disconnected the call._

 _He sat back in his chair and breathed a sigh of relief. For the first time in months he had something to be happy about and something positive to think about when he thought about T'Pol. They would speak tomorrow and figure this mess out._

 _XXX_

Trip sat in his quarters trying to meditate. He'd been locked in here for almost eight hours and felt like he was in some kind of masturbation porn film. That's all he seemed to be doing. He needed to get on the other side of this or he'd hurt himself before she even had the chance to hurt him.

 **He breathed in deeply and tried to focus on the lake at his grandparent's home. It was his equivalent of T'Pol's white space and it brought him peace. Slowly it started to come together. He saw the rippling lake, the motor boats with water skiers, heard his grandmother placing lunch on the table and his grandfather fishing off the end of the dock. Trip was just about to relax when something started to emerge from the water. He squinted his eyes against the sun to get a better look at it. Then realization dawned on him; it was a very naked T'Pol walking toward him and out of the water. She'd found him in his space and she looked intent on taking him right on the dock.**

" **T'Pol?" Trip asked as he backed up slightly. She looked determined as she approached him.**

" **T'hy'la," she moaned as she continued towards him.**

 **He looked toward his grandfather who continued to fish as if she wasn't there. This was way too odd.**

 **Then she was on him and pulling the clothes from his body.**

" **T'Pol, my grandparents," Trip groaned as he tried to keep some of the shredded clothes on his body.**

" **They are not real, they cannot see us," she said before she took his mouth with hers.**

" **But, I can see them and it's a little un-nerving," Trip stammered as she freed his cock and started to caress it.**

 **Immediately their surroundings changed to her white space and his grandparents disappeared.**

" **Thank god," he moaned as he finally gave in to her ministrations.**

 **She massaged his cock with her hands and as he touched her breasts she sighed. He'd only heard that sigh when she was orgasming so it surprised him. Experimentally, he massaged her breasts and she started to moan and then gyrate against him as she worked his cock over.**

" **Are you orgasming over just my touch?" Trip asked her, intrigued.**

" **Yes," T'Pol gasped as she leaned forward and took him in her mouth. He heaved into her and within a minute had come into her mouth as she rubbed her crotch against his thigh and moaned in ecstasy.**

" **Holy hell," Trip whimpered as he seemed to come forever. Wave after wave of passion swept over his body as he came into her mouth and she moaned against his legs. He continued to massage her breasts until she suddenly dropped his cock and fell to the ground beside him.**

" **T'Pol?" He asked, only half conscious himself. "T'Pol?"**

 **He leaned over her and noticed that her breathing was shallow and her skin pale.**

" **T'Pol!" He yelled as he lifted her towards him. "Wake up!"**

Then the white space vanished and he was alone on his floor, half-dressed with cum all over the thighs. He was struggling to breath but managed to pull up his pants, unbothered by the mess and run to his comm.

"Doc!" Trip screamed into the direct link to the Medical Office.

"Captain?" Dr. Pennington asked, surprised by his upset.

"Contact Enterprise immediately! T'Pol is in trouble!" Trip screamed.

"I'm on it!" She called back and broke the connection.

Trip stripped off his pants, wet a towel and hap-hazzardly wiped himself off before he dawned his uniform and hit the exit button. The door wouldn't open.

"Fuck!" He yelled.

He immediately called the Bridge.

"Mohamed! Come get me right now!" Trip yelled.

"Captain?" Mohamed asked.

"Now!" Trip commanded.

"Yes, sir," Mohamed replied before the link was broken.

Trip estimated it would take two minutes for him to confirm Trip could be released with Dr Pennington before he showed up at his door.

He ran to his computer and tried calling the Bridge of Enterprise but they were too far away from this computer to reach them. He needed the one in his ready room, it was capable of much farther transmissions.

"Come on! Come on!" Trip said as he paced back and force waiting for Mohamed.

Suddenly, the door opened and Mohamed was there with a hypospray.

"Sir?" Mohamed asked.

"Fine," Trip said as he showed his neck to his first officer. "I have to get on the Bridge!"

The hypospray was applied and Trip took off at a fast run with Mohamed running behind him.


	7. Chapter 7

**Author's Note: Please see notes in Chapter 1. All bold type if 'white space' and all italics are a memory.**

XXX

"Sir, you need to calm down and not elevate your…" Mohamed called after Trip as they ran toward the Bridge.

"T'Pol's in trouble!" Trip called over his shoulder as he reached the turbolift and smacked the button.

"What kind of trouble?" Mohamed asked as he watched his Captain impatiently wait.

"I don't…I don't know but she's unconscious and…and…"

"We need to call Enterprise!" Mohamed said, his level of alarm suddenly higher.

"I called the doc and she has, hopefully, reached them," Trip said as the doors opened and he ran into the lift and smacked the button for the bridge. "I need to get on my Ready Room computer so I can contact them. Fuck!"

Mohamed watched the desperate man and felt sorry for him. It reminded him when their youngest daughter was born, there were complications and there was nothing he could do to help his wife. He was on Pulsar and was helpless.

The doors opened onto the Bridge and the Captain barely waited for them to start to open before he stepped through.

Mohamed ignored the surprised looks of the Bridge crew and followed his Captain into his ready room. When the door shut behind Mohamed, the Captain was already madly tapping the subspace code into his computer terminal.

The stood and waited for the connection to be made. Mohamed observed the sweat rolling down the side of his Captain's face, the sweat stains under his arms and the tired and worried look housed on his face. He was not in good shape; not by any stretch of the imagination.

"Enterprise," Hoshi said on the other side.

"Hosh, get me Phlox," Trip demanded.

"He was just called to a medical emergency on D deck and…"

"Jon?" Trip asked, his breathing challenging and his body overwhelmed.

"He left as well, Malcolm oversees…"

"Tell Malcolm to transfer this call the Jon's ready room I need to speak with him, now!" Trip said in no uncertain terms.

"Uh, oh…okay Captain," Hoshi stammered, taken aback by the hostility in Trip's voice.

The screen went momentarily blank and Mohamed handed his Captain a glass of water.

"Thanks," Trip said absently before he took a drink, his eyes never wavering from the blank screen.

"Captain!" Malcolm said animatedly as his face appeared on the screen.

"Mal, I need you to comm Jon and find out what's going on with T'Pol," Trip said as he leaned toward the screen.

"Uh, sure I can try and…"

"Now, Malcolm!" Trip yelled sharply.

Malcolm's eyes widened on the screen and he looked quite taken aback by the demands of his friend.

"Lieutenant Reed, Captain Tucker is ill and needs to find out the condition of Commander T'Pol immediately," Mohamed hedged as he leaned into the screen as well. "He's…he's not himself."

Trip backed away from the screen and started to erratically pace behind Mohamed and mumble to himself as he ran his one hand through his hair.

"I can see that," Malcolm said, trying to put the pieces of this confusing puzzle together. First, there was an emergency call to Phlox, then his Captain ran out of his ready room like a bat out of hell, and now Trip was calling and barking orders. Something was incredibly wrong. "Give me a moment."

Mohamed breathed a sigh of relief and looked at his pacing Captain. Mohamed was no doctor, but in his estimation the Captain's pon farr had just gone from bad to critical in the last few hours.

"Sir, maybe sitting and thinking calming thoughts?" Mohamed suggested.

Trip immediately stopped pacing and sat heavily in a chair, holding his head in his hands.

" _I wish for the Council to recognize that my marriage to Koss should be voided," T'Pol said as she stood with her hands behind her straight back in front of the Vulcan Council._

 _Trip was sitting in the third row of the Council chambers and, surprisingly, Koss was sitting next to him. When T'Pol had explained her bond to Trip, Koss immediately had explained the relief he felt at the information. It wasn't that he wanted to dissolve their marriage, but the lack of any type of connection with T'Pol had been disconcerting to his Vulcan mind. Now, he was free to choose another and the lack of connection was not some genetic problem with him._

" _And the reason for this? Vulcan marriages are rarely dissolved," an elderly Vulcan man said from his seat perched high atop the chamber._

" _We are incompatible and have both agreed that marriage does not suit us," T'Pol said confidently. It had been agreed by T'Pol and Koss that they should avoid mentioning her bond with a human if at all possible. A simple dissolution was easier._

" _How long have you been married?" an elderly Vulcan woman asked._

" _203 days, as of today," T'Pol said._

" _Hardly long at all." Another elderly Vulcan pointed out._

" _Long enough to know that it is not for us," T'Pol countered._

" _Have you lived together during this time?" the first council member asked._

" _We have not," T'Pol admitted._

" _Perhaps a period of time residing in the same household would resolve this issue," the elderly woman said._

 _Trip shifted in his seat, he didn't like how this meeting was going at all. He looked toward Koss and got nothing from him; the man sat stoically next to him as if he was watching someone defend a parking ticket, not trying to end his marriage._

" _We both agree that it would not help," T'Pol said assuredly._

" _I find it illogical to dissolve a marriage that neither party has attempted to make successful," the elderly man concluded._

" _My job would not permit me to live on Vulcan," T'Pol added._

" _You have three science degrees with highest honours?" the third man asked._

" _I do," T'Pol reluctantly admitted._

" _It is logical that you will receive an excellent position with the Science Directorate," the third man concluded. "And Koss is an architect?"_

" _He is," T'Pol answered._

" _And he has a familial home you could reside in?" the third man continued to probe._

" _He does," T'Pol said, annoyed._

" _Then it is logical that you take a leave from your position with Starfleet, apply for positions at the Science Directorate and reside with your husband in his familial home for the period of one year before you decide if this is something worth dissolving."_

 _Trip sighed heavily and several Vulcans watching the procedure turned to look at him, the annoyance wasn't in their features but he could see it in their eyes._

" _We do not wish to remain married," T'Pol said, her anger just below the surface._

" _Logically, you have not explored the concept of marriage as a couple, and should do that before any rash decisions are made," the elderly woman said. "I'd like to hear the testimony of Koss."_

 _Next to Trip, Koss rose and walked stiffly to stand about two feet away from T'Pol._

" _You are in agreement with your mate?" the elderly man asked. "Your marriage should be dissolved?"_

" _I am," Koss nodded. "We are incompatible and I wish to start a family. My pon farr will arrive in two months and T'Pol will be on her starship."_

 _T'Pol looked at him surprised, he hadn't informed her that his pon farr was eminent._

" _It seems logical, with pon farr to close, that you should remain married until you have, at least, dealt with that," the elderly man said as he folded his hands before him._

 _T'Pol looked taken aback for a moment and took in a sudden breath._

 _Koss looked toward her and then back at the Council._

" _I call the Council closed," Koss said loudly and with authority._

 _Suddenly, the Vulcans around him started to murmur and Trip looked around wondering what had just happened._

" _It is your right to do so, Koss," the elderly woman said, somewhat annoyed. "Although to what purpose, I am interested in discovering."_

" _Clear the council!" A man standing to the side of the chamber called loudly. All the Vulcans in the seats rose and started to neatly exit. Trip stayed in his seat and looked at the backs of T'Pol and Koss perplexed._

 _The man who had called the Council clear walked toward him and stopped near his seat. "Everyone must leave except those involved."_

 _Trip was about to argue that he was involved, when a quick look by Koss over his shoulder told him he should just leave._

 _So, reluctantly, Trip left the Council chamber and waited on a bench outside. It felt like the times he'd been sent to the Principal's office in his youth. Twenty minutes later, the man who had forced his exit appeared at the door._

" _Captain Charles Tucker?" He asked Trip._

 _Trip nodded._

" _Your presence is required," he said as he help open the door to allow Trip entrance._

 _When he walked to the front of the room he stopped on the other side of T'Pol and looked at her or re-assurance. He received none._

" _T'Pol claims you two are bound?" The elderly woman asked Trip._

" _Yes, ma'am," Trip nodded._

" _And this bond was initiated 572 days ago with the commencement of neuropressure sessions?" the elderly woman continued._

" _I don't know the exact date ma'am," Trip conceded. "But I trust T'Pol knows the dates."_

" _And the bond became more established with the commencement of a sexual relationship?" the elderly woman asked. "Which began 381 days ago?"_

" _Again, I don't know the dates," Trip hedged. "But we were involved."_

" _Sexually involved?" the elderly man clarified._

 _Trip could see T'Pol's ears tinging a deep shade of green out of the corner of his eye._

" _Yes, yes, sir," Trip nodded._

" _And this sexual relationship has continued despite her marriage to Koss?" the elderly man continued._

 _Trip closed his eyes and wished he could have a much more honourable answer then the one he had. He looked briefly at Koss, standing stoically next to T'Pol and swallowed hard._

" _It has," Trip admitted. He felt like the biggest asshole in that moment. Here was Koss trying to help them and he had been fucking his wife behind his back._

" _And you were aware of this sexual involvement T'Pol had with Captain Tucker before your marriage?" the third man asked Koss._

" _I was aware," Koss explained. "He attended our wedding."_

 _Trip closed his eyes; this hearing was starting to sound like a bad soap opera._

" _And T'Pol informed you of her sexual involvement with Captain Tucker after your marriage?"_

" _She called 96 days ago to inform me of the possibility," Koss admitted._

" _What?" Trip asked, his head snapping to look at T'Pol and Koss._

 _T'Pol then looked at him for the first time since he had joined her and Koss in front of the Council. "It was only logical that he be informed."_

 _Trip knitted his eyebrows together and contorted his face. "You called Koss to tell him you and I were going to cheat on him?"_

" _Technically, it was only T'Pol who was…" Koss began._

" _And you agreed?" Trip asked Koss astounded._

" _She was in space and I was on Vulcan, if she had needs that I couldn't meet, logically I needed to agree," Koss explained calmly._

 _Trip looked at him for a moment taken aback and then shook his head; it was all a little too much to process. And the fact that T'Pol hadn't informed him she'd spoken to Koss 96 days ago…wait, 96 days ago was about the time of the ceremony on Vulcan when they first saw each other again. They hadn't slept together until a month after that and…so, she knew even then that she was going to succeed at getting him into her bed?_

" _T'Pol also claims that the bond is mental, but the Vulcan Science Directorate states there is no evidence that a mental bond can be formed between a Human and a Vulcan," the elderly woman said with distaste._

" _Can't you check it?" Trip asked. "With one of those mind melds or…"_

" _If it cannot exist then there is no logical reason to look for it," the elderly man explained. "We have decided to allow the dissolution of the marriage of T'Pol and Koss on the basis of incompatibility. Koss, we wish you luck finding a mate before your pon farr. T'Pol we hope you will take some time to meditate and conclude that your relationship with Captain Tucker is unhealthy. This case is closed and the records are sealed."_

 _Trip looked at T'Pol confused. She nodded for him to follow herself and Koss out of the chamber as the Council members rose to take a break. As they approached the back-door Trip stopped walking._

" _Wait a second, what just happened there?" He asked causing T'Pol and Koss to stop their forward motion._

" _The marriage is dissolved," T'Pol informed him calmly._

" _But, they wished Koss all the best, and said they hoped you'd come to your senses about me…" Trip said confused._

" _They cannot condone our relationship," T'Pol said._

" _But, why didn't they check the bond?" Trip asked placing his hands on his hips, everything seemed slightly off about this dissolution._

 _Koss stepped toward him and took a deep breath. "If they checked for it and found a Human-Vulcan bond, then they'd have to acknowledge that it existed. By not checking, logically, the bond is still impossible."_

" _Isn't that like burying your head in the sand?" Trip asked._

 _Koss and T'Pol both looked at him confused._

 _Trip sighed and looked Koss in the eye. "I'd like to apologize for not taking your marriage vows with T'Pol seriously and for how I behaved while you were married to her. I shouldn't have…became involved with her in that way. I'm not the kind of man to go behind…"_

" _But I was aware," Koss explained._

" _It doesn't make it any more right," Trip sighed._

 _Koss looked at him confused for a moment and then nodded. "I accept your apology."_

 _Trip smiled at him and felt a great sense of relief. Although it hadn't kept him from taking T'Pol into his bed several times over the last few months, he had always felt a great deal of guilt after each encounter._

" _We should leave," T'Pol said as she nodded toward the exit._

 _Trip and Koss nodded and started to walk with her toward the exit._

" _So, you need to find a nice Vulcan bride pretty fast?" Trip asked Koss. He was trying to end things better with her ex-husband._

" _There is a woman, H'Yar, that I work with," Koss explained. "I think she would be agreeable to a match."_

" _That's great news," Trip said as they exited the chambers. "You'll have to send T'Pol some wedding pictures."_

 _Koss nodded and turned to face the two of them._

" _It was agreeable to see you again T'Pol," Koss said with a slight bow. "I wish you and Captain Tucker a prosperous future."_

" _Thank you, Koss," T'Pol said as she bowed slightly. "I appreciate your agreement to the dissolution and your help with the proceedings. I wish you a long and pleasant life."_

 _With those final words Koss turned and left them on their own in front of the Council chambers._

" _How do you feel about all of this?" Trip asked T'Pol quietly._

" _I am pleased to be free," T'Pol said honestly. "If I had been stronger and not married Koss to begin with, none of this would have been necessary."_

" _Crooked roads are more painful," Trip said as they started to walk away. "But a hell of a lot more interesting."_

"Trip?" Jon's voice came over the sub-space screen. When Trip looked up he saw a very worried friend on the other side.

"How is she?" Trip asked as she stood and walked toward the screen.

"Phlox has placed her in an induced coma and we've gone to Warp 4.6 to get to you as soon as possible," Jon informed him. "Phlox says she's being held in a sort of stasis until he revives her, but he believes we should wait for that until you are with her."

"What happened?" Trip asked.

"We're not sure," Jon sighed. "Sensory overload or…can we speak privately?"

Trip turned and looked toward Mohamed and sighed. "I'm kind of under 24-hour guard. Mohamed knows the situation and he'll keep whatever is said private, I trust him."

Mohamed's heart filled for new love for his Captain. He had really liked him before, but Trip's faith in him as a first officer and friend these last couple of days had made him more committed to Captain Tucker then ever before.

Jon shifted uncomfortably. "She was naked when we found her and Phlox seems to think her collapse and unconsciousness was from heightened arousal and sensory overload."

Trip rubbed at his jaw and dropped his head to his chest. "I might have had something to do with that, I didn't know it could…"

"What do you mean Trip?" Jon asked, confused.

"Remember how I told you we could sense each other? Sometimes hear thoughts?" Trip asked Jon.

"Yes," Jon nodded, still not sure where this was going. "Were you having some vivid sexual thoughts that somehow affected her?"

"No, well, yes, in a way," Trip stammered. "What you don't know…what we haven't shared with anyone, even Phlox, is that we can meet up in a kind of meditative space…"

"I'm sorry?" Jon asked, perplexed.

"We can kind of visit each other, in our heads, and talk or…or do things," Trip explained, somewhat embarrassed.

"But it's not real, it's in your head and…" Jon started to piece it together.

"It feels very real when it's happening, and the physical results are present when I come out of that state," Trip said uncomfortably as his face reddened.

Neither Jon of Mohamed said anything and both seemed increasingly confused by his explanation.

"Today, for instance," Trip started to explain. "I was trying to mediate because I was going squirrely in my quarters, and she appeared in my meditation. She and I got physical, and when she passed out, the link ended and I was left with quite a mess on myself."

"Ohhh," Jon and Mohamed said at once as realization hit them.

"I have found scratches, even bruises that I couldn't explain after we sparred one time and…"

"So, you and T'Pol are…together…even when you aren't together?" Jon clarified.

"Nothing is the same as the real deal," Trip said as he rubbed at the back of his neck. "But this…well, this is damn close."

"Holy shit," Jon said with a slight chuckle. "If humans could do this with each other, Starfleet would solve the whole deep space mission and staff fraternization issues."

"I hope neither of you have any intention of telling Starfleet about this, because I have no desire to be a lab rat somewhere," Trip said with a smirk.

"No, this is between us, Mohamed?" Jon asked.

"Absolutely, Captain," Mohamed nodded with assurance.

"Thanks," Trip sighed. "I just want you to get T'Pol here so she's not in danger anymore."

"As fast as we can," Jon nodded. "Are you planning to tell Phlox about these physical brain meetings? He may need to know that when he's monitoring…"

"I'll inform Carol and she can share with Phlox," Trip nodded.

"Okay, well we both better get back to our ships," Jon smiled at his friend. "This was an enlightening conversation."

Trip lowered his head and shook it embarrassed. "Shit Jon, all the dirt you have on me…"

"Friends have dirt, and never use it," Jon said with a smirk. "Besides, I think you could probably get me dishonourably discharged and have one woman put me on her hit list with the information you have on me."

"True!" Trip chuckled with his friend.

"We should be there in 36 hours," Jon said confidently. "You get everything ready on your end and we'll take care of T'Pol."

"Thanks Jon," Trip smiled at his friend.

"No problem," Jon smiled back. "Archer out."


	8. Chapter 8

Author's Note: Please see notes in Chapter 1. Italics = a past event. If you read it, review it!

XXX

Trip Tucker watched the clock like it was a ticking time bomb about to explode. He had another 12 hours until T'Pol would rendezvous with the Pulsar and staying in his quarters jerking off relentlessly had become boring after the first four hours. Since he'd become Captain he'd longed for more time to himself; time to relax and reflect. Now, all he had was time, but there was no relaxing or reflecting happening. His brain felt like a ball of mush and his body was in an almost constant state of arousal. It was hard to focus on anything, so he focused on the clock.

His door chimed and he looked toward it; Mohamad had taken away his access so it was pointless to go to it. And he knew it would be Carol with his latest hypospray. He pulled up his track pants, placed some tissues in the garbage and stood to face his guest.

"You can come in," Trip said as his eyes flicked toward the burning candle, hoping it would somehow combat the smell of sex in the room.

Carol walked in and her eyes looked him up and down.

"How are you feeling Captain?" Carol asked cautiously.

"Like shit," Trip muttered.

She walked toward him with a sensor in her hand and was taking his readings as Mohamed walked into the room behind her.

"We thought you may appreciate something to do," Carol said as she placed a hypospray on his neck and activated it.

"I'm not sure how much good I'll be at anything," Trip said honestly. "But I'll try."

"I thought you may want to assemble the bed in the lab?" Carol asked him.

"Sure," Trip shrugged.

"It'll keep your mind off things and, to be honest, I've never been good at that sort of thing," Carol admitted.

Trip chuckled at her joke.

"I've lowered the temperature in the lab to 5 degrees so it should be comfortable for you," she said. "I thought maybe you could stay there until T'Pol arrives…makes the transfer more seamless."

"Do you need to pack any clothes or…?" Mohamed asked.

Carol and Trip looked at him and laughed at the same time.

"Oh right, clothing optional," Mohamed smiled at them.

"I doubt it's much of an option at all," Trip sighed as he placed his hands on his hips. "Is nausea normal?"

"Probably," Carol said. "Captain, if you experience it, it's normal."

"Right, because I'm the only one," Trip nodded.

"Yep," Carol answered. "But honestly, do you need anything?"

"Maybe the meditation candles?" Trip said as he looked around the room. "I'll grab a change of clothes so I can shower and change before she arrives…that's about it."

Carol watched as he gathered a few things and placed them in a small bag.

"I'll get the cleaning team in here while you're gone," Mohamed said as he looked around the room.

Trip quickly ran into the washroom and bagged up the garbage and carried it out with him; he didn't want the cleaners coming across his pile of used tissues. They exited his room and he dropped his garbage in the chute before they made their way to the lab. Carol was at-the-ready with her tranquillizer and Mohamed was scanning the halls for any females that may cause a reaction.

Just as they entered Medical, Manuela Cruz turned to see them.

"I thought I told you to take a break?!" Carol snapped at her as she watched Trip's interest spark next to her.

"I did, but…" Manuela stammered.

Mohamed stepped in front of Trip when he saw the Captain take a step forward.

"Captain?" Carol asked, suddenly alarmed by his razor-sharp focus on Manuela.

Trip pushed Mohamed forcefully to the side, slamming him against the wall before he took a large step toward Manuela.

"Shit!" Carol yelled as she leapt toward the Captain. "Manuela into DECON now!"

Manuela looked at the Captain's crazy eyes and ran to DECON slamming the door behind her just as the Captain almost grabbed her shoulder.

"Trip!" Carol yelled as she tried to get a hold of him and administer the tranquilizer as he banged on the glass frightening Manuela inside who started to scream.

He finally stopped banging the glass and reached for the entry code where his fingers started to enter a series of numbers that, Carol was sure, would override any lock sequence Manuela had entered.

"Trip!" Carol yelled as she grabbed at his neck. She was just about to place the hypo-spray on his neck when he whipped around and pushed her so hard she skidded across the floor on her ass and landed ten feet away.

"Captain?" Mohamed called and, for a moment, Trip looked away from Manuela and the lock. It was all Mohamed needed to fire his gun and stun the Captain, dropping him to the floor like a sack of potatoes.

" _Captain, I have a delivery for you, it's marked 'personal' so would you like it left in your Quarters or brought to you on the bridge?" the purser, Germone, explained over the comm._

" _From my mother?" Trip inquired._

" _It's not marked Earth, sir," Gerome explained._

" _I'm in my ready room now, so maybe bring it on up here," Trip said as he continued to read his PADD._

" _I'll be up soon," Gerome said before he signed off._

 _Trip continued to review the department reports until his buzzer rang out._

" _Come in Gerome!" Trip called._

" _It's not Gerome," Mavis said as she stepped inside._

" _Oh," Trip said looking up. "Sorry Mavis, what can I do for you?"_

" _I just wanted to see if my shift change had been approved?" Mavis asked as she sat down._

 _Trip rubbed at his one eye and tried to remember. "Shift change?"_

" _For our leave on Earth? Frank said he'd take the helm for the day so I could visit my boyfriend?"_

" _Right, yeah, uh sure," Trip sighed. "You know you have two days on Earth."_

" _Yeah, but Frank was nice enough to give me one of his," Mavis smiled. "I wasn't supposed to get any this round."_

 _Trip cupped his jaw and rubbed at it with his thumb._

" _You know Ming has helm training and keeps asking for some time…"_

 _Trip saw Mavis' face light up at the prospect._

" _Let me run it by her and see if we can't get you that second day with…?"_

" _Borut," Mavis supplied._

" _Borut," Trip said. "I'll talk with Ming and see if it'll work."_

" _Thank you so much Captain!" Mavis smiled at him as she rose from her seat._

 _Just then the door buzzed._

" _Come in Gerome!" Trip called. "If it's my mama's cookies I'll bring them out for the Bridge to share."_

 _Mavis nodded and left just as Gerome entered._

" _What do ya got for me Gerome? Cookies? Letters? Some pie? Oh wait, you said it's not from Earth?"_

" _No, it's not and it doesn't feel like any of that sir," Gerome said as he placed the box on Trip's desk._

" _Well, thanks anyways," Trip sighed._

 _Gerome nodded and left._

 _Trip reached for the box and unwrapped the package with it's precise corners and saw two candles neatly packed inside. He picked one up; it was large, round, smelt of sandalwood and was familiar in a way that brought him back to a time when candles like this burned all around him._

" _T'Pol," he sighed._

 _He looked inside for a note and, finding none, looked at the candles confused. Why was she sending him two candles? It had been almost a month since the Pa'nar correspondence, as brief as it was, and he'd heard nothing from her since._

 _He remembered she liked to burn these while she mediated, while they performed neuropressure, and when they made love. Was she trying to tell him something? Cause him to remember? Apologize? Drive him bat shit crazy?!_

 _Trip rolled one of the candles around in his hands for a few minutes thinking of all the reasons that she could have sent them before he surrendered and placed them back in the box._

" _Gerome?" Trip called over the comm._

" _Captain?"_

" _Can you run a trace on this package, I'm pretty sure I know the source, but I wanted to make sure," Trip said; trying to make the package seem more impersonal than it was._

" _I just pulled it up Captain," Gerome noted. "Commander T'Pol sent it from Prima Station."_

" _Thanks Gerome," Trip said before he closed the connection._

 _He knew the Enterprise had Prima Station on their itinerary, but why had T'Pol purchased and sent him candles from there? They hadn't visited there together…there was no connection._

 _Still not comfortable with this mystery, Trip decided to face it head on. He called up her email and wrote a quick message._

" _I'm not sure the occasion, but thank you for the beautiful candles."_

 _He paused for a moment, knowing what he wanted to write but unsure whether he should. Deciding finally, his fingers started to tap again._

" _It reminds me of my time on board Enterprise. Trip"_

 _Before he could change it to the wording he really wanted "…my time with you" Trip hit send and sat back in his chair with a candle in his hand._

 _Her reply came two days later: "When I saw them at the market, I thought of you. T'Pol"_

 _As he read the reply he took several deep breaths. She had said it, and now he'd wished he'd said it…but what could he do? She was married and he was not her husband. Trip glanced at the candles still sitting on the corner of his desk and sighed. He reached into his desk and pulled out a lighter, lighting both candles for just a few minutes, so he could remember her too._

"Oh, god what…?" Trip mumbled as he started to sit up on the biobed.

"I apologize, sir," Mohamed said as he looked down at his Captain grabbing his side. "I will answer for my choices and…"

"You stunned me Mohamed," Trip said as he lifted his legs to the side of the bed.

"And for that…" Mohamed started again.

"I didn't get to Manuela, did I?" Trip asked, suddenly more aware of what caused the circumstance in which he was stunned.

"No, she was safe in DECON," Carol said as she approached him. "Thank god. I didn't realize how strong you were."

"Christ, thanks for keeping me away from her. Did I hurt you?" Trip asked, concerned and embarrassed as he turned toward Carol.

"Just my pride and my tailbone," Carol smirked. "Both will recover."

"I'm so sorry Carol, I…"

"You were a man possessed," Carol said. "I had to tell Manuela you were having an adverse reaction to a flu drug and hallucinating. Now I have to remember all the lies I've told so we don't get caught."

"I'm so sorry," Trip said embarrassed. "Thank you both for protecting her and…"

"She's fine and so are you," Carol said. "And T'Pol will be here in 4 hours."

"How long have I been out for?" Trip asked.

"Eight hours," Carol conceded. "It was easier to just keep you sedated. But now I need the bed assembled."

"Well, at least I'll be well rested," Trip sighed. "It does feel good to not be…all the time."

"I'm not terribly good at carpal tunnel surgery so anything to keep you from that!" Carol joked.

"Hardy har har," Trip smirked at her.

"Seriously though, thank you both…I don't know how I'll ever be able to repay you fo…"

"Happy to help Captain," Mohamed smiled at him.

"Ditto," Carol said as she placed a hand on his shoulder.

Trip took a deep breath and looked at a box in the corner of the room. "I better get started on that bed."

He hopped off the biobed and walked toward the box; a man on a mission.


	9. Chapter 9

Author's Note: Please see notes in Chapter 1.

XXX

Trip Tucker had assembled most of the room for T'Pol's visit. The bed had been created, all the items they may need had been neatly piled on various surfaces, and the curtain Carol had provided him with to give them some privacy was waiting to be hung. He just had to wait for the brackets to be brought up.

"One hour," Trip sighed to himself as he flushed the toilet in front of him and pulled up his pants. To say that his cock was starting to chafe from contact with his hand was an understatement. An hour ago, he had to, embarrassingly, request a topical cream.

Trip heard yelling on the other side of the lab and quickly opened the door to a sight he never thought he'd see. Two of their passengers were joined mid-sex act and screaming.

Trip his to comm button.

"Carol, what the hell is going on?" Trip asked as he looked at the crazy scene before his window.

"Adrana and Mex have apparently…got stuck," Carol explained as she pushed them slightly apart so she could get a better look at their bodies.

"Stuck?" Trip asked.

"Why is he here?" Adrana asked as she looked over at the Captain.

"He's being sequestered for a contagion," Carol explained.

Trip looked at the two naked and entwined bodies before him and tried to take deep breaths. He had the worst luck. Ever.

"Can you unstick them?" Trip asked as he felt his member harden and his hips start to gyrate.

"It's a question of suction and muscle tension," Carol said as she left the pair and walked to a nearby cabinet where she rifled through some boxes.

"He's come twice," Adrana said as she looked directly at Trip, her pert breasts still glistening with sweat. She started to circle one nipple with the tip of her finger.

Trip closed his eyes and rubbed against his forehead vigorously. Mex seemed to be in far more pain than Adrana.

"Doc, I've gotta…" Trip stammered as he started to stumble toward the washroom.

Carol was too focused on her treatment to hear him. "I think the fact that you were submerged in water made it worse. I'm going to have to give you an injection, Adrana, to relax your muscles…"

Trip slammed the washroom door behind him and sank down to the floor in a ball, his back against the wall. He couldn't get the image of a very naked and sexed-up Adrana from his mind. He banged his fist against the wall and finally stood to jerk off; her image at the forefront of his thoughts.

 _Trip couldn't get the image of T'Pol from his head as she told him there would be no one else for her but him. It was all to damn confusing and he had a ship to Captain, he couldn't allow this to occupy his thoughts as it already had for most of yesterday when he'd spent the better part of his day researching the Vulcan database and speaking with T'Dar._

 _It probably meant something different to her than it meant to him, anyways. That was their lot in life; Vulcan-Human miscommunication. He could teach a course in it by now. She probably just meant to inform him of this bond and do nothing about it. He was getting all worked up over nothing; there would never be anything between them again._

" _No," Trip said out loud. He wasn't going to be the one to contact her. She was still married, they were on separate ships, he had his career to think about…_

 _Dilemma resolved, he turned to his computer screen and got started on the monthly assignment changes._

 _An hour later the sub-space signal that a call was coming through to his Ready Room pulled Trip from the Engineering Proposal for more Engine power for testing. He wiped across his mouth and straightened his uniform. Sitting up a little straighter, Trip pressed the button to receive the call._

" _Captain Tucker," Trip said as he watched the screen come to life before him. It was T'Pol sitting in her private quarters dressed in one of her low-cut, form fitting Vulcan uniforms._

" _Is this a good time to speak?" T'Pol asked as she met his eyes._

" _It's just me in here T'Pol," Trip said as he leaned forward slightly. "You mind explaining this bond a little more?"_

 _He saw her take a deep breath and straighten in her chair._

" _I must first apologize," T'Pol began._

' _Here it is," Trip thought. 'She's back peddling already.'_

" _I had no idea when we became involved, that a mate-bond could form between a Vulcan and a human."_

 _Trip nodded and waited for her to continue._

" _I feel as if you have been brought into this bond without consent and, it is completely my fault," T'Pol admitted._

" _Why don't you start by telling me what, exactly, it is," Trip sighed as he rubbed at his jaw. He was assuming at some point she was going to tell him how it could be broken._

" _When we mated," T'Pol began._

" _Made love? Had sexual relations?" Trip clarified. "You make us sound like farm animals."_

 _T'Pol shifted uncomfortably in her seat._

" _Mating is…complicated, for Vulcans," T'Pol offered._

 _Trip closed his eyes and sighed._

" _How is it complicated?" Trip asked. "When you say 'mating' to a human it sounds like farm animals not the intricate practice of two people enjoying each other, sexually."_

" _Vulcans don't have casual relationships, sexual or otherwise," T'Pol explained. "My choice to engage in a sexual relationship with you was not spontaneous."_

 _Trip raised both his eyebrows at this admission._

" _It wasn't?" He asked._

" _I had been considering the possibility, seriously, for several months," T'Pol began. "I knew, if discovered, it would further ostracize me from Vulcan society."_

" _And yet, you chose to go ahead with…mating," Trip asked._

" _My interest in you took precedence over logic," T'Pol explained, embarrassed._

 _Trip couldn't help the smirk that took over his face._

" _My interest in you took precedence over logic as well," Trip admitted._

" _For a Vulcan to choose someone outside of an arranged marriage is…unusual and highly risky. To choose a human as well…"_

" _You were playing with dynamite," Trip supplied._

" _Essentially," T'Pol agreed._

" _So, this bond?" Trip prompted._

" _We are linked physically and mentally," T'Pol explained. "The more time we spend with each other, the stronger the link."_

" _So, the link isn't strong because we've been apart?" Trip asked._

" _Somewhat," T'Pol agreed. "Our neuropressure sessions and sexual involvement is what led to the bond. My feelings for you…"_

" _Feelings?" Trip inquired._

" _I place you above all others," T'Pol said honestly._

" _All others?" Trip asked._

" _Yes," T'Pol said as her eyes lowered._

" _Even your husband?" Trip clarified._

" _I regard Koss as an acquaintance, no more," T'Pol said._

 _Trip closed his eyes. 'This is so fucked up.'_

" _Clarify please," Trip said._

" _Clarify my relationship with Koss?" T'Pol asked._

" _Your feelings for me," Trip said sternly._

" _I told you, I place you above…"_

" _In human-speak," Trip interrupted._

 _T'Pol met his eyes and then looked away briefly._

" _I feel a great deal of love for you," T'Pol said softly._

 _Trip felt as if he'd been stabbed in the heart. She had said it. But, now what?_

" _My bond with you will not permit me to be involved with another. I am not sure if it is the same for humans…perhaps with distance and time…"_

" _Hold on, wait a second. I'm preventing you from being with Koss?"_

" _I have no desire to be with him, our bond does not change that. But, I feel I must also tell you that bonds can be broken by a Vulcan priest, if that is what you wish to do," T'Pol continued._

" _You want us to break this?" Trip asked._

" _I am merely making the offer so you may…"_

" _Do you, T'Pol of Vulcan, want to break this bond with me?" Trip asked, pointedly._

 _Again she looked off to the side and closed her eyes briefly before she looked at him and answered. "No."_

 _Trip wiped his eyes with the palms of his hands. This was a lot to wrap his head around._

" _What are the long-term effects of this bond?"_

" _Long-term, we can choose for it to dissolve on its own," T'Pol explained._

" _No, I mean, if we keep it, nurture it…" Trip explained._

 _She raised an eyebrow at that. "We would have to become involved physically again. The mental connection would solidify and we would have no secrets from the other. My mind and your mind would, essentially, be one."_

" _Okay," he nodded._

" _Please be aware that there have been circumstances where one member of a mate bond dying means the immediate death of the other member."_

" _Okay," Trip nodded again._

" _It is not to be entered into lightly," T'Pol warned._

" _I know," Trip nodded._

" _But yet, you still wish to continue with the bond? Solidify it?" T'Pol inquired._

" _Darlin' you are married to another man and I want nothing more then to mark you as mine," Trip said with a smirk. "I don't know if it's this bond talking or I've decided that adultery means nothing to me but…"_

" _Koss would not care," T'Pol assured him._

" _I should care," Trip said. "But you love me and I love you and…and this marriage to Koss is a marriage and I should abide by that but…"_

" _But there is no logic in remaining apart," T'Pol finished for him._

" _Exactly," Trip nodded. "Now how are we going to make this work?"_

 _XXXXX_

Trip heard someone knocking on the door to his washroom; he'd fallen asleep on the floor.

"Captain?" Carol called.

"Just a second, Carol," Trip said as he peeled himself off the floor and ran a hand through his hair.

He opened the door to find a very worried doctor on the other side.

"I have separated them and hung the curtains," she said as she gave him another hypo spray. This one seemed more potent.

"Thank you, doc," Trip smiled, sheepishly at her.

"They're docking in fifteen," Carol told him with a smile.

"Fifteen?!" Trip asked, surprised.

Carol smiled back at him more broadly.

"Oh, thank the lord," Trip sighed.

"Phlox and I decided to go with a double sedation before you two are placed together," Carol explained. "We wanted to prevent…injury."

"Thank you," Trip sighed.

Carol patted him on the shoulder and walked from the room.

Trip looked around the room and smiled to himself. Everything was finally coming together.


	10. Chapter 10

Author's Note: Please see notes in Chapter 1

XXX

Mohamad greeted Dr. Phlox and Captain Archer at the lock when the two ships joined. He was nervous about meeting the very famous Captain and wondered what the state of Commander T'Pol would be.

The airlock doors opened and Captain Archer immediately offered his hand.

"Nice to see you again Mohamad," Captain Archer said as they shook hands.

"Captain Archer, it's a pleasure," Mohamad smiled at him.

Mohamad looked behind him and noted the biobed with a Commander T'Pol on it, unconscious.

"Dr. Phlox and I have Commander T'Pol," Captain Archer said. "Where should we take her?"

"Shouldn't she be…awake?" Mohamad asked, confused.

"I assure you, I will wake her up before she joins Captain Tucker," the Denobulan doctor chuckled.

Mohamad nodded and gestured for them to follow him toward the lab.

"How's he doing?" Captain Archer asked as they walked behind Phlox pushing T'Pol.

"He'll be much better soon," Mohamad said. "There were some issues with a couple of women on board but…"

"Women?" Jon asked. "Did he…?"

"No," Mohamad supplied quickly. "He managed to control himself, and one time I…uh, stunned him."

"Good job," Jon said as he clapped Mohamad on his back. "Neither of them would have been happy if you didn't. I've got to say, the force of T'Pol's pon farr is…well, it's much stronger than I expected."

"I too am surprised by the Captain's…need," Mohamad admitted.

"Well, hopefully everything will be taken care of now," Jon said as he cleared his throat.

Mohamad nodded and cleared his throat.

They rounded the corner and walked into the Health Centre. Carol greeted them at the doors.

"Welcome onboard," Carol said as she smiled at everyone. "I've given him twice the sedation required."

"Nice to finally meet you in person Dr. Pennington," Phlox smiled at Carol.

"Nice to meet you Dr. Phlox," Carol greeted them. "Captain Archer."

"What do you have to do to wake her up?" Captain Archer asked as he nodded toward T'Pol laying asleep on the biobed.

Just then the glass banged behind them and everyone turned to see Trip Tucker looking out the glass window. He was sweating profusely and had an arm pressed up against the glass as he stared at T'Pol.

"Trip!" Jon said as he walked toward his friend. "How are you…?"

"Why is she unconscious?" Trip asked, ignoring his friend.

"Ah, Captain Tucker," Phlox said as he turned to also face Trip. "It was safer for transport and I thought that…"

"Wake her up!" Trip demanded.

"Uh, yes, I was just getting to that," Phlox explained as he turned to face T'Pol.

Trip banged the glass again. "Now!"

"Doc?" Jon asked as he turned to face the doctor.

"Perhaps we should move her closer," Phlox said uncomfortably.

He and Mohamad rolled the biobed closer to the door and Phlox prepared the injection to wake her.

Trip followed them to the door and stood expectantly at the door watching what was happening with his wife.

Phlox injected T'Pol with the counter reaction and everyone waited for her eyes to open.

" _I feel like I'm sneaking into your house while your parents are asleep," Trip whispered as he materialized in her quarters._

" _You are, essentially, sneaking on board," T'Pol agreed. "Although, if the Captain is the equivalent of my father, he is informed of your presence. And Mr. Mayweather did transport you from the transport pad here."_

 _Trip stood playing with his fingers, not sure what he should do next. He wanted to pull her into his arms, they'd decided to be together, but now that he was here…_

" _Would you like some tea?" T'Pol asked._

" _I'm kinda wired, does it have caffeine in it?" Trip asked as he watched her walk toward the teapot._

" _It is non-caffeinated," T'Pol said as she poured them each a mug of tea. She walked toward him and handed him a cup of tea._

 _She then gestured for them to sit on her bed. They each took a drink and sat in silence next to each other._

" _How long is he down there for the event?" Trip asked._

" _Five hours," T'Pol answered. "Then we are destined for Casis 4."_

 _Trip nodded and said nothing. Then, T'Pol placed her mug down and turned abruptly toward him and cupped his cheek in her hand._

" _I have missed you," T'Pol admitted._

" _I…well, you know I've missed you," Trip stammered._

 _T'Pol leaned forward and was about to kiss him when he pulled back slightly and placed his mug down on the table with hers._

" _Sorry, I…I didn't want to scald…" Trip stammered again._

 _T'Pol moved forward toward his lips again and captured them with hers._

 _They kissed softly, slowly and luxuriated in the feel of the other person against them. Over a half hour passed with them just kissing and enjoying each other's presence and calm reassurance that they were together, that this was real._

 _Trip pulled back and placed his hands on her shoulders, holding her at a distance._

" _Are you sure that you want to do this? We could just…talk or continue to communicate from our ships," Trip said softly as he watched her for signs of hesitation._

" _I am sure," T'Pol said as she met his eyes. "Are you?"_

 _Trip closed his eyes and dropped his hands onto his lap._

" _Trip?" T'Pol asked as she reached forward and touched his hand._

" _You're married," Trip sighed, raising his head to look at her carefully._

" _I am," T'Pol agreed._

" _My entire life I have known, in my heart, in my head, that married women were off limits," Trip said quietly. "And now you're asking me to abandon…well, abandon my entire belief system."_

 _T'Pol shifted forward slightly._

" _I am not asking you to abandon your entire belief system," T'Pol noted. "Merely your ethical dilemma with becoming romantically involved with a woman who is contractually bound to another man."_

 _Trip nodded._

" _Trip," T'Pol said softly as she touched his face. "Do you love me?"_

 _He smiled at her, "Of course I do. Have for…for a long time."_

" _And I love you," T'Pol said as she ran the pad of her thumb over his lower lip. "It would be illogical for us to deny these feelings."_

 _Trip leaned forward and kissed her briefly on the lips then pulled back and smirked at her. "So, logic dictates we should have an affair?"_

" _I don't see it as that," T'Pol said in return._

" _How do you see this then?" Trip questioned._

" _You are the man I love, my mate," T'Pol said clearly. "I should be with you."_

 _Trip swallowed hard; she had said more intimate things to him in the last few minutes then during their entire time together. Things had changed._

 _He closed his eyes and took a deep breath before he leaned forward and kissed her passionately._

 _She returned the kiss and pressed herself against him. He reached for the zipper at the back of her outfit and pulled it down revealing soft skin and allowed his hands to wander over her skin. She reached for the buttons on his inner layer and started to undo them and the zipper on his uniform so she could gain access to the chest hair she enjoyed so much._

 _As soon as she started to rub her hand over his pectoral muscles he felt his body respond. Trip's heart rate increased, his body began to tingle and his lips worked more aggressively against hers. T'Pol crawled onto his lap and pulled his uniform down to his waist, taking a moment to pull his underlayers over his head, breaking contact with his mouth._

" _A little anxious, are we?" Trip chuckled._

" _We only have 4 hours and 3 minutes," T'Pol said as she pulled her own outfit down to her waist revealing her ample breasts._

" _As I recall, we were always good with a deadline," Trip smiled at her._

" _I wish to mate several times before you leave," T'Pol said. "It will help our bond and allow us more of a mental connection."_

 _Trip nodded and leaned down to capture a nipple between his lips. Her back arched and a guttural sound came from her mouth. Trip suckled at her breast and her hips rocked against his body._

 _He groaned approvingly as she wiggled out of her pants and pulled herself back onto his lap. She was naked and draped over him as he suckled her breasts and massaged her buttocks. He had the woman he loved right where he wanted her. His one hand moved from her sweet butt cheeks to her core where he slowly inserted one, then another finger and worked her into a frenzy. When he was finished pleasuring her, she melted back into the bed and waited while he took off the remainder of his clothing and slid on top of her. His lips and tongue worked the edge of her ear as his cock found the inside of her._

 _He let out a guttural groan and pushed his hips deeply against her until the breath caught in her throat and she gasped underneath him._

" _Oh god," he sighed before he started to work himself inside of her. She rocked her hips in unison against his and wrapped her arms around the back of his neck pulling him lower so they could kiss._

" _You make me feel," T'Pol said happily._

" _That's a good thing, right?" Trip asked her, slightly out of breath as he continued to work them toward completion._

 _She nodded her head in the affirmative and kissed down his neck._

 _He, surprisingly, didn't release as soon as he expected and managed to hang on for another half hour of pure heaven before he came inside of her. The release was almost spiritual in nature and he felt as if he may have floated up slightly off her frame and the bed._

 _He kissed her hungrily on the lips and rolled onto his back and lay next to her on her bed. Their breathing was heavy and they were both covered in a fine sheen of sweat._

" _Darlin'" Trip said as he placed a sweaty hand on her thigh and gave it a small squeeze. "I've missed you."_

 _T'Pol covered his hand with her own and felt warmth rush through their bond. In that moment, everything was perfect._

"Get the door!" Phlox yelled as T'Pol sat up quickly and looked around the room, inhaling the air around her.

Jonathan Archer ran for the door and pushed the button to allow the door to open. Immediately, Trip rushed out of the locked room and took T'Pol in his arms. She scaled his body and kissed him hungrily.

"Get them into the room," Carol ordered.

Mohamad Ncumbe and Jonathan Archer pushed Trip and T'Pol into the lab and pressed the button to lock the door. They heard a loud bang and something crashed against the floor.

"Should we…?" Mohamad asked as he and everyone else looked strangely at the door.

"Leave so we don't hear anything else?" Captain Archer suggested. "Yes, I think that's wise."

They all started to walk from the room but froze when they heard T'Pol moan loudly.

"Sounds…successful," Phlox smiled at everyone.

"Come on," Jon said as he gestured for everyone to walk out ahead of him.

Jon turned and looked back one last time before he stepped outside to the sound of Trip moaning the name of several deities


	11. Chapter 11

Author's Notes: Please see notes in Chapter 1. Italics= flashbacks.

XXX

Trip lay with T'Pol passed out, naked, and sprawled over his own naked body. They were both covered in sweat and fluids and he couldn't tell anyone what day or time it was to save his own life. He vaguely recalled Carol or Phlox comm'ing in several times, probably at regular intervals, over the last few…days?

He remembered little of what he or T'Pol may have said to them. He remembered that she only spoke Vulcan for the longest time, and as their need started to dissipate her English started to return. He also remembered the aggression behind most of their acts and quickly scanned her body finding bruises all over it; her back, arms and shoulders were a patch-work quilt of blue and purple. Trip closed his eyes and dropped his head back down to the…floor?

He then looked around and noticed that they weren't on the bed but the cold tile floor and there was something under his left butt cheek that seemed pointed and sharp. He shifted slightly and reached down pulling out a fork. His own body felt like he's lost a boxing match to a world champion and his skin had that tight feeling in several places that indicated there was dry blood caked on him.

Trip turned his head to the right and saw that their bed was a heap of sheets and pillows that looked as if it had been attacked. He turned his head to the left and saw food laying all over the floor and a trail of blood drops that lead to them. Trip took a deep breath and focused on T'Pol's steady even breathing; he prayed to god and Surak that he hadn't hurt her too badly. He lifted her one hand to notice the delicate gold bracelet with charms on it he'd given her after they got married. Somehow that bracelet had managed to stay in one piece, but there was also a piece of bedding tied around that same wrist and it had been sheered off. Why it was there he hadn't a clue.

"Darlin'" Trip whispered to his wife. "T'Pol, I think we're on the other side of it."

He felt her lashes flutter against his shoulder and her swallow hard against his skin.

"T'Pol?" Trip asked again, anxious now to get up off the floor and assess her for damage.

"Your assessment is correct," T'Pol said as she slowly raised her head and winced.

"What hurts?" Trip asked, concerned.

"Everything," T'Pol said as she took a deep breath. "You have blood on your lip, at the corner of your eye and…and in your hair."

"I don't know how any of those things happened, do you remember much?" Trip asked as he felt her tenderly touching his lip.

"I remember attacking you," T'Pol said as she carefully sat up and her sticky body peeled away from his sticky body. "You wanted to eat."

"I don't remember that," Trip said softly as he took a shallow breath; he may have one or two broken ribs.

"I threw your food on the floor," T'Pol said as she stiffly turned her head to the side and noted the food all over the floor. "You tied me to the bed."

"I did?" Trip asked surprised. "So, I could eat?"

"I think it had been days…" T'Pol started; sitting back on her heels between his spread legs. "What is today's star date?"

"I haven't a clue," Trip said as he too tried to sit up.

"You have bruises all over your body," T'Pol said shocked as she carefully touched one on his shoulder. "And I believe that is my bicuspid pattern."

Trip slowly looked at his shoulder and noted the perfect teeth marks surrounded by dried blood.

"You little vampire," he teased. "I can't believe I tied you to the bed because I wanted to eat so badly."

"You came over with food in hand and had intercourse with me while I was tied up," T'Pol explained. "I think you had two ideas in mind."

"T'Pol, I'm sorry, I…"

"I was strong enough to break the restraints," T'Pol noted as she lifted her bruised wrist for him to see. "I chose to remain tied…at least for a while."

He looked at her breasts red and splotchy and somewhat bruised and internally chastised himself for not being able to control himself.

"I'm sorry for…"

"We both used each other as we needed and wanted to," T'Pol said, taking his hand in hers. "I think your penis is sprained…those burst blood vessels are not normal."

Trip then looked down at his penis and thought he may vomit then and there. It was purple and had countless burst blood vessels riddling its surface. It was swollen and looked as if it was almost twice as thick as usual. He felt his stomach lurch and T'Pol sensing this, reached for a nearby salad bowl and placed it under his mouth before he vomited. He had few stomach contents, so instead vomited bile into the bowl and onto the floor between them.

"Oh god, I'm sorry," Trip said as he tried to wipe some bile off her hand. "I don't know what…"

"It is shocking to look at," T'Pol agreed before she placed the bile filled bowl next to them on the floor. "I suggest we shower so we can better assess the severity of our injuries."

Trip nodded and felt his head starting to throb; he didn't dare look back at his cock.

He watched T'Pol gingerly rise to her feet between his legs and look down at her battered body. He spotted several bruises in the shape of his hands on her thighs, and arms and felt his stomach lurch again. Trip stiffly rose and grunted when he tried to straighten fully.

"I think you may have some internal injuries," T'Pol noted.

"I think you're right darlin', you?" Trip asked as he cupped her shoulder with his hand and looked deeply into her eyes.

"I don't believe so," T'Pol answered. "But a biometric scan will determine the extent of our injuries."

"Let's get that shower, huh?" Trip asked as the two of them gingerly shuffled toward the small washroom.

" _Oh, thank god you got my message," Trip said as he walked into his apartment in San Francisco and saw T'Pol rise from his couch._

" _Your neighbor relinquished your key with…" T'Pol didn't finish her sentence as her husband wrapped his arms around her and took her mouth with his._

 _Minutes later, after he was properly satisfied with his greeting, Trip leaned back and looked at her._

" _You're growing your hair out," he said with a smirk._

" _I decided I would try something different," T'Pol said, slightly self conscious._

" _I like it however you like it, darlin'. You could shave it all off and you'd still be the most beautiful woman in the universe" Trip smiled and then gave her a quick peck on the lips. "I though you'd be in my briefing this morning. Jon was."_

" _I was overseeing the re-fit," T'Pol said softly. "We leave in two hours."_

" _I thought it was 20:00 that you shipped out?" Trip asked, disappointed._

" _It's been pushed forward," T'Pol said as she placed a hand over his heart. "I must leave in 30 minutes if I am to catch the shuttle and be on board by…"_

" _Nooo," Trip whined as he stepped back from her. "Come on."_

" _Whining and complaining will not alter the situation," T'Pol noted._

" _It's the first time I've seen you since we got married," Trip continued to whine._

" _And you will see me again in 3 weeks when both Enterprise and the Pulsar are…"_

 _Trip grabbed her hand and hurried her to his bedroom. It was a mess with come clothes piled in the corner and smelled of stale air. He'd been on earth for 5 days of meetings about the new NX and the Enterprise was supposed to be there for all five. He was supposed to have five days and nights with T'Pol. But, a humanitarian mission delayed Enterprise and they docked just in time for Jon to make the final NX briefing this morning. Trip managed to quickly send T'Pol the address of his apartment and key instructions before he had to do a presentation. He stole away the first chance he got and now she was leaving in 30 minutes?_

" _You wish to have sex?" T'Pol asked as she noted the unmade bed._

" _No," Trip said honestly as he stripped out of his clothes and threw them haphazardly around the room._

" _Then, I don't…" T'Pol replied confused._

" _Just strip down and I'll explain," Trip said softly as he helped rid her of her clothes. He then threw the bedding over his bed and reached for a nearby quilt. "Just let me hold you."_

 _T'Pol looked at him perplexed but climbed on top of the bedding with him and settled her body against his frame, his arms wrapping around her body. He sighed loudly, and his entire body seemed to turn to a gelatinous substance as he engulfed her in the quilt._

" _Tell me about the re-fit," Trip said softly._

 _T'Pol furrowed her brow and told him about the changes to the plating that were necessary._

" _Now tell me about the rest of your day," he said as he peppered the side of her face with small kisses._

" _You are acting peculiar," T'Pol noted after she had told him about her day._

" _I have dreamt about laying in bed with you in my arms for weeks," Trip whispered. "As soon as we found out we'd both be on Earth…T'Pol I just want a half hour like a normal couple."_

" _A normal couple is usually not in bed together at 15:00 hours," T'Pol noted._

" _Let's pretend its bed time," Trip said softly. "I just want a little slice of normal."_

 _T'Pol thought about what he said and shuffled her body a little closer to his. She could feel his hard member pressing against her stomach._

" _Tell me about your presentation? Did they like the engine design?" T'Pol asked him._

 _Trip smirked at her and told her about all their reactions and the section of the presentation he'd screwed up, but no one seemed to notice._

" _Soval liked it?" T'Pol asked, surprised._

" _He really liked it," Trip said with a chuckle. "Surprised the crap out of everyone. Afterwards he shook my hand and said he thought I'd make a fine Captain for the NX-03. But, what I can't get, is it hasn't been announced yet…how'd he know?"_

" _Although it hasn't been announced," T'Pol started as she lowered her hands to his erection and cupped him. "Having you attend all of the briefings, and do several presentations has made it fairly obvious that they are thinking of you for Captain."_

 _Trip closed his eyes as her hands started to wander into his underwear._

" _You are their choice," T'Pol said as she worked him over with her hands. "They may not have officially announced anything, but anyone interested could see that their choice has been made."_

 _Trip huffed as she started to run her hand up and down his member._

" _T'Pol I didn't ask you in bed so you'd…" Trip stammered._

" _I know," T'Pol said as she kissed the underside of his jaw. "But if we are truly pretending it is time for bed…I would hope for intercourse."_

" _Oh, I…how much time have we…?"_

" _Enough," T'Pol said as she overtook his mouth with a passionate kiss._

 _Trip rolled on top of her and she had their bottom halves naked within seconds. Fifteen minutes later, a very dishevelled T'Pol of Vulcan and Trip Tucker were racing across Starfleet base, so she could catch her shuttle. He waved at her as she jumped onto the shuttle just as the doors were about to close. It wasn't until the shuttle left the bay and he started to walk back to his apartment that he noticed her panties were sticking out of the leg of his pants. Trip quickly bent over and scooped them up into his fist and shoved them into a pant pocket as he walked back to his place. He had one more night on Earth before he was back on the Pulsar. His sheets would smell like her and T'Pol's panties were in his pocket. They'd only had thirty minutes, but he'd got the little bit of normal he'd so been craving._

"You have two broken ribs, a sprained ankle, some trauma to your nose, although it's not broken, many bruises and cuts, none of which are of too much concern, a cut lip, a broken index finger, and a fractured penis," Carol Pennington said trying not to smirk. They were serious injuries and not funny at all, but after listening to the two of them for days go at it like rabbits, she was not surprised he's sprained it.

"Will it cause permanent…uh, damage?" Trip asked from his place on a biobed. T'Pol was sitting on one next to him dressed in a hospital gown.

"No," Phlox reassured him. "It will take a couple of weeks for it to heal and repair. The swelling should go down, with proper care, in the next day. It will not limit your ability to engage in sexual intercourse in the future. But no intercourse for at least three weeks. Although, you will have to…gingerly…vacate your tubes of any ejaculate to prevent any blockages."

"Masturbate?" Trip asked shocked. "With all it's been through?"

"To prevent blockages, and with a gentle…hand," Phlox said, also trying not to chuckle. The things he had heard from the Captain and the Commander over the last three days had drawn some very vivid images in his mind that, had he not been a medical professional, would have caused him a great deal of pleasure.

"Fine doc," Trip sighed.

"And Commander you have some serious bruising and scratches, a few severely strained leg muscles, internal vaginal abrasions, and one broken wrist," Phlox reported. "As the two of you go, you got off rather lightly. You will need to apply this salve internally for at least a week, possibly two. No bubble baths or harsh soaps. You may find it challenging to sit in a meditative pose for a long period of time for upwards of a month. I would suggest light stretching to not aggravate your leg muscles but to keep them pliable. And you and I will start on physiotherapy for your wrist."

"Thank you doctor," T'Pol said as she took the salve from him. "And did we conceive?"

"I know that was a large worry for the two of you, but I see no signs of a fetus," Phlox said sincerely.

Trip and T'Pol just nodded and he reached over to take her hand, his splinted finger gingerly held in hers.

"Both of you have normal blood pressure, testosterone and estrogen levels and are exhibiting no further signs of the blood fever," Carol smiled at them. "You have, hopefully, another seven years before you have to go through this again."

"Thank god," Trip sighed.

"We would like to thank the two of you for your assistance and professionalism throughout this…trying experience," T'Pol said formally as she eased herself off the biobed. "I assume we will be breaking dock?"

"In eight hours," Phlox nodded. "I would suggest the two of you get some sleep in the Captain's quarters?"

"I need to get back on duty," Trip said. "I read Mohamed's reports and…"

"And everything is well in hand," Phlox coaxed them.

"But doc…" Trip started.

"After such a traumatic experience as a couple, I would suggest, from a psychological standpoint, some time spent gently bonding with each other," Carol suggested. "The two of you can't just leave each other after the damage you have both caused to the other person."

Trip looked toward his wife and nodded. She looked more fragile then he's ever seen her; he was concerned about her, about them. They needed to put their relationship on an even keel before they parted ways. It would be months before he saw her again and he couldn't have his aggressive treatment of her be the most recent memory.

"Agreed," Trip said softly as he reached over and started to pull the curtain across their two biobeds. "Let's get changed and get back to my room darlin'"


	12. Chapter 12

Author's Note: Please look at Author's Notes in Chapter 1. Italics = flashback.

XXX

Trip Tucker shifted uncomfortably in his Captain's chair. He had only been sitting for the docking process and already he was uncomfortable.

"We're docked sir," Javier said clearly.

"I better head down, Mohamad, you have the bridge," Trip called before he carefully lifting out of his chair and walked slowly toward the turbolift.

Everyone had been told that he had fallen from some scaffolding while ill and, as far as he could tell, it was believed by all. His sprained ankle hurt if he stood on it too long, but his cock hurt if he sat too long so each day since T'Pol left had been a delicate balancing act of sitting and standing so the pain was shared.

They had arrived at Prime One Colony and the Mensa people were finally getting off the Pulsar. It wasn't a moment too soon; their complaints and requests were getting on everyone's nerves. The rich hippie brats, apparently, felt their stay on board the Pulsar was equivalent to a cheap motel with bad water pressure. The fact that they had inconvenienced two ships and not changed one thing about their exhibitionist behaviour was just one reason everyone was happy to see them depart.

"It's been an interesting visit with your people," Trip said as he offered Adrana his hand to shake.

"I wish I could say the same in return, Captain," Adrana said smugly. "You seem to be in better health."

"I am, thank you," Trip nodded as they shook hands.

She leaned in and touched his chest, rubbing his pectoral muscle before she stepped back and departed his ship with the last of her people.

"What was that about?" Mavis asked, astounded.

"They're a sexual people," Trip chuckled. "She needed to make some sort of sexual contact with me to feel she had the upper hand."

"You aren't offended?" Mavis asked.

"Mavis, I am just happy to be rid of them," Trip admitted quietly. "Who drew the shortest straws on the clean-up?"

"Bill, Franka, and Miranda," Mavis said softly.

"Well, let them know they can get started," Trip said before he turned too suddenly and winced.

"Sir?" Mavis asked, worried.

"Just my ankle," Trip hissed as he slowly placed weight back on it.

"Maybe you should go to Medical and…"

"Can you tell Mohammed I'll be in my quarters approving the leaves," Trip said as he hobbled away. "If he needs me, he can get me there."

"Of course, Captain," Mavis nodded. "Can I bring you anything?"

"No, I've got ice in there and some coffee," Trip said over his shoulder. "But thank you for the offer!"

Mavis nodded and watched her Captain hobble away. His injuries were quite extensive; it must have been quite the spectacular fall.

When Trip arrived back in his quarters he immediately grabbed the ice pack from his stasis unit and a PADD before he dropped onto his bed and propped himself up with pillows. He carefully placed the ice pack over his cock; his ankle would be next.

"God," he huffed as be dropped his head back against the wall. It had been four days since T'Pol left and his body felt sorer today then the first day. He kept himself so busy those first few days that he probably wouldn't have noticed if he was in a lot of pain. But now, with days of healing past him, Trip wasn't sure why he was now feeling worse.

He checked the chronometer; she'd be off shift in 20 minutes. He'd call her then and see if she had improved at all or, if like him, today was the worst day yet.

Trip turned on the PADD and started to review the leave requests.

 _Trip woke to hair tickling his nose. He'd (apparently) fallen asleep on T'Pol as he had been kissing his way down her body. It was after their pon farr when everyone had suggested they take some time to just be together before the Enterprise departed. He had taken her to his quarters, they'd both stripped down, and he'd applied her salve, carefully massaging her vaginal walls with the ointment. And, despite his fatigue and pain, he'd taken on the task of kissing every bruise on her body better. He must have fallen asleep around the one on her public bone because he woke to find his face pressed into the top area of her pubic hair._

 _He lifted his head and looked up to see her sleeping soundly still. Carefully and quietly he pressed himself up and into a seated position and looked down at the ice pack Carol had made him strap to his penis to help with the swelling. It was barely cool anymore, so he carefully unwrapped it and looked at his butchered member._

 _It wasn't as swollen as it had been, but it was still red, and bruised and severely damaged. He didn't feel the urge to vomit at the sight of it (quite the improvement from before) but he also found himself quickly averting his eyes and reaching for a fresh pair of underwear he could pull on to cover it._

 _He then looked at his wife and winced at the sight of the bruises that were patterned all over her body. Some memories of their time in pon farr started to return all at once and he was not proud of his behaviour; he had never, in his entire life, behaved with any woman as he had with her for those three days. She was his wife, whom he loved, how he had acted toward her was…unforgiveable._

 _He remembered tying her up and impaling her with his member rough and hard as he ate a sandwich and ignored her. He remembered hearing her surprise when she woke to find him taking her while she was either asleep or unconscious at the time. Finally, he remembered trying to enter her anally and the knock down drag out fight that happened as a result; his two broken ribs and cut lip had been the result of T'Pol and her Vulcan strength defeating him._

 _As these memories surfaced all at once, Trip felt his stomach start to lurch again. He ran to the washroom and vomited bile into the toilet as tears rolled down his face. She'd want to leave him after this. Hell, he should be charged with rape based on the few memories he had of the days they spent together. Part of him wanted to know it all; every horrible act, so he could face them. Another, weaker, part of him hoped that no other memories would surface; the ones he had were horrible enough._

" _Trip?" T'Pol asked from his washroom door._

" _Please go away," Trip begged her._

" _You're sick again, is it an injury or…?" T'Pol asked._

 _He heard, through the quiet and steady tone of her voice, that she knew what had upset him. That, over their bond, she had also seen what he had remembered._

" _I was a monster," Trip groaned as he wiped at his snooty nose._

" _You were a man in the heat of…"_

" _You…the way I treated you…T'Pol, you should leave and never look back, I…"_

 _It was then that he felt her sit behind him and wrap her body around his back while her legs wrapped around his on either side of the toilet. He could feel ever inch of the skin he'd battered and bruised and abused._

" _Vulcans understand that in pon farr no one acts like they should, actions are not based on feelings or love but raw desire," T'Pol explained. "I thought you understood?"_

" _Understand that I turned into a monster who sexually assaults his wife?" Trip asked. "No, I don't understand that."_

" _Trip," T'Pol sighed as he felt her rest her head against this shoulder. "You are not responsible for what you did in that room. I do not hold you responsible for your actions. And you should not hold me accountable for mine."_

" _Yours?" Trip asked. "From everything I remember I was the one hurting you and my injuries are a result of you defending yourself from me."_

 _It was then that he felt her fingers snake up his neck and to the side of his face._

" _My mind to your mind," T'Pol said softly. "Our minds are one."_

 _Immediately, he was transported back to pon farr and that room. Trip tried to pull away but her mental hold on him was too strong. She showed him images of her angrily handling his member to get him hard as he winced and choked in pain. He saw images of her pushing him hard against the wall as she assaulted his mouth and his body. Finally, he saw her sitting on his face as he flailed below her, and she rubbed herself back and forth, uncaring of whether he wished to be part of the act._

 _T'Pol's fingers broke contact with his temples and she hugged him tightly around his chest._

" _Vulcans are raised to understand that these acts are not assaults on the other person but rather uncontrolled needs that must be satisfied; it is a life and death situation, Trip," T'Pol said softly. "I am not proud of my actions either, but I accept them because of pon farr. Nothing like that would ever happen between us under normal circumstances. You need to do this as well, or it will drive you crazy."_

" _How can I…I mean, it's pretty clear you weren't consenting and…" Trip stammered._

" _We will need to go to a Vulcan temple and have the memories purged," T'Pol said softly. "Many Vulcans choose to do this, and I think it would be wise for us to do this as well."_

" _And until we can do this?" Trip asked, hopeful but unsure that was the solution._

" _We are kind and patient to ourselves and each other," T'Pol explained. "I forgive you, and you forgive me. Although logically, there is nothing to forgive."_

" _Darlin', in my mind, there's a whole lot that I did that was beyond forgiveness," Trip said softly as some tears dropped from the corner of his eye._

 _He felt her sigh behind him. They were both quiet for a long time before she broke the silence._

" _Is pon farr a Vulcan act?" T'Pol asked._

" _Yeah," Trip agreed._

" _Then deal with it as a Vulcan man would," T'Pol said softly. "He would supress the emotions, store away the memories so they didn't overwhelm him, and make arrangements to go to the temple to purge them. He would continue with his wife gently and compassionately knowing the incidents happened, but not allowing that knowledge to touch all aspects of his life or their relationship. He would, logically, not assign blame to himself or her for their actions during pon farr."_

 _Trip knitted his brows together and said nothing._

" _Do you think you can do this?" T'Pol prompted._

 _Trip sighed hard and dropped his head to his chest. "I can try."_

" _Thank you," T'Pol said softly as he felt her place a soft kiss on his back._

" _You're really okay with this? With what I did? With what we did?" Trip asked as he looked over his shoulder at her._

" _I am," T'Pol said assuredly._

 _Trip closed his eyes and shifted to get up. T'Pol rose as well._

 _He immediately turned to face her and hugged her gently against him._

"Hi darlin'," Trip greeted his wife. "How are you doing today?"

"Physically, I am a little stiff," T'Pol admitted.

"I'd say today has been the worst day for me," Trips aid with a soft smile. "I was thinking the same may be true for you."

"I think the day we woke from pon farr was the worst for me, but today is comparable," T'Pol explained.

"I'm submitting my wish list today," Trip said with a smirk. "You should expect a call."

"Do you have a second choice besides me listed?" T'Pol asked.

"No," Trip said. "Just you darlin'"

"Maybe it would be wise to ask for me as merely your science officer and not…"

"Are you kidding me?!" Trip snapped as he sat up a little. "You should be a Captain yourself but because you're Vulcan…"

"I'm just suggesting…" T'Pol started.

"No," Trip said definitively. "You will be my first officer. I don't want anyone else and they need to see that quite clearly."

T'Pol gave him an admonishing look but said nothing.

"How are your…lady parts?" Trip asked as he swallowed audibly.

"Healing nicely," T'Pol said.

"And physio?"

"I am trying to convince Phlox that I can accomplish the exercises on my own but…"

"Let him help T'Pol," Trip said with a smirk. "He probably likes talking to you."

She merely nodded.

"I don't see any bruising around your neck," Trip said softly as he carefully looked at her on the screen.

"Vulcans heal quickly," T'Pol said plainly. "Our blood circulates at a high rate and…"

"Well, this human wishes the same were true for him," Trip chuckled. "I'm laid up with my ankle again."

"You should be off your ankle for at least 10 days," T'Pol said chastising him. "Have the Mensa departed?"

"They have, thank god," he said. "She took liberties in the last moment. Grabbed my pec and sort of…massaged it."

"They're a sexual people and she probably just wanted to show she could," T'Pol explained.

"That's what I told Mavis," Trip snickered. "I'm glad it was my pecs and not my cock. I would have shot to the ceiling like a cat if she grabbed that."

T'Pol giggled slightly and Trip gave her a huge smile.

"I haven't heard you giggle like that in a while," Trip noted.

"I know," T'Pol said softly.

"It's nice," Trip said quietly.

T'Pol met his eyes and smiled at him.

"A smile and a giggle? Now, I'm getting spoiled," Trip chuckled.

"Are you excited about your leave?" T'Pol asked, changing the subject.

"I don't know if excited is how I'd put it," Trip said as he leaned back. "My wife is thirty light years away."

"Speaking of that," T'Pol began.

"You're not going to be thirty light years away?" Trip joked.

"I am," T'Pol answered plainly. "But I think when, and if, I get a position on your ship we should make Starfleet aware of our bond and possibly have an Earth ceremony."

"Sign me up!" Trip quipped.

"I'm serious Trip," T'Pol admonished. "They need to not disqualify me based on our relationship but, if I become part of your crew, we need to be honest."

"Agreed," Trip nodded. "So, when do I get to carry you across the airlock?"

T'Pol looked at him confused.

"When do you want to get married?" Trip asked her.

"Before the crew has assembled," T'Pol said. "I want our marriage in place before we meet them."

"You've thought a lot about this," Trip smirked.

"I have," T'Pol said.

"Why?" Trip asked.

He watched her shift her body on the screen.

"T'Pol?" Trip pushed.

"I don't want anyone to think that you and I are in a questionable relationship or that I am getting preferential treatment," T'Pol explained.

"And?" Trip asked, knowing there was more to her explanation.

"And I would like us to start on the Juno with everything truthful, no obfuscation or inveiglement," T'Pol explained.

"Agreed," Trip nodded. "Which still leaves the question of when are we getting hitched?"

"As I stated earlier," T'Pol sighed. "I need to be transferred to your crew first and…"

"Even if you aren't, and you will be, I want us to have a wedding T'Pol, you know that right?" Trip asked. "It's not about everything being above board for me."

"I know," she said softly.

"You are my wife, by Vulcan standards at least, and I want everyone to know it," Trip smiled at her. "I'm proud to be your husband."

"T'hy'la..." T'Pol started.

"I'm serious," Trip said as he met her eyes.

"I don't doubt you are," T'Pol said truthfully. She could feel his love for her across their bond; it was strong and sure and all-encompassing. "I love you as well."

Trip smiled at her and placed a quick peck in the air in front of him.

"You should rest and so should I," T'Pol said quietly. "If I get a call before tomorrow I'll let you know. Otherwise, I'll speak with you tomorrow?"

"I'll be here with bells on darlin'" Trip said quietly. "Get some sleep, I love you."

Trip felt her love for him across their bond; it was like beautiful music and a warm hug that never let go.

They disconnected the call and Trip pulled up his wish list for Juno crew members on his PADD. He looked it over one more time before he hit the 'send' button.


	13. Chapter 13

Author's Note: Please see previous notes. Italics= flashbacks.

XXX

Trip Tucker rolled over in bed and winced in pain. All his bruises were healing nicely but his cock…his cock was another story. If he kept any pressure off it, he was fine. But rolling onto it was not advisable.

"Christ," Trip hissed as he rolled back onto his back and looked up at the ceiling.

He wiped at his sandy eyes and started to focus on the ceiling above him and the Vulcan script that was softly embedded into it. T'Pol would know how to read it, he, however did not. The thought of her, in that moment, laying next to him and reading whatever beautiful Vulcan saying was above him made him miss her even more. It was completely unfair that he was on Vulcan for three days and she was no where near.

"T'Pol," he sighed as he closed his eyes to the script and took a deep breath.

Trip reached out to the PADD sitting on his bedside table and activated it. There was, as expected, a communication from Starfleet. They had approved T'Pol's commission on the Juno.

"Yes!" Trip said with a fist pump before he lunged upwards and kissed the PADD.

He lay back and relished, for the moment, in the fact that this gypsy lifestyle was going to come to an end. She was going to marry him, Earth-proper, and they were going to be together on the Juno. No more of this sneaking around, quick meet-up bullshit. He would wake with her each morning, go to bed with her each night, and when he had shore leave in the future, she'd be on it with him.

His PADD beeped and he smiled when he saw who it was.

"I was just thinking about you," Trip said as he answered the video call.

"I felt that you were awake and thought it may be a good time to call," T'Pol said. "You slept well?"

"Yeah, I guess I did," Trip hedged.

"I know you are lonely," T'Pol answered.

"Did you get the communication?" Trip asked, changing the subject.

"I did," T'Pol said. "It is wonderful news."

"They want you to join me in five weeks," Trip said with a shit-eating grin. "And they have approved three other positions."

"Three?"

"Hastings for Security, Li for Helm, and Dr. Quinn for Medical," Trip said. "If Carol didn't have family on Vulcan I would have tried to steal her away but…"

"You can't take her from her family, Trip," T'Pol cautioned.

"I know," he sighed. "You ready to leave the Enterprise in 5 weeks?"

"I will be," T'Pol answered honestly. "The Captain wishes to throw me a party but…"

"T'Pol, it's a right of passage, having a going away party after your years of service is…well, it's necessary," Trip smirked at her. "Promise me you'll let him throw one?"

T'Pol sighed uneasily on the other side of the communication.

"T'Pol?" Trip asked.

She closed her eyes and sighed again. "Fine."

"Without all kinds of conditions?" Trip asked.

"Conditions?" T'Pol asked innocently.

"Darlin, you forget that I can hear you," Trip chuckled. "No, the party must be under one hour. No there cannot be speeches. No there must be limited attendees. No…"

"Fine," T'Pol finally relented.

"Thank god," Trip sighed. "Just…just enjoy it, ok?"

"I will endeavor to do so," T'Pol said.

"Thank you," Trip sighed.

"You need to contact your family about our wedding," T'Pol said.

"You send me the date and place and I'll get them there darlin," Trip smiled at her.

"It looks as if we will be mainly on Jupiter Station but there is a two day leave at the very start when…"

"I saw that too," Trip chuckled. "Great minds."

"So, we are agreed on the date?"

"Sign me up," Trip said as he sat up in bed and tried to fix his mussed hair.

"Do you wish to have a religious ceremony or…?"

"My cousin Maggie is a minister, we could ask her?" Trip offered.

"That is agreeable," T'Pol said as she mentally checked off her list. "Do you wish to invite others or…?"

"Will Enterprise still be docked?" Trip asked.

"I don't want to invite the entire crew Trip," T'Pol cautioned him.

Trip laughed at her comment. "I was thinking just Jon, Mal, Phlox and Hoshi."

T'Pol said nothing in return.

"You were just thinking my folks," Trip sighed.

"I am agreeable to those four people," T'Pol said. "Just not any more."

"I get that privacy is big for you," Trip hedged. "But they are our friends and…"

"I know," T'Pol sighed.

"I was also thinking Mohammad and Carol," Trip added.

"Two more?" T'Pol asked, surprised.

"Just two," Trip pleaded. "You know I have a lot more friends I could…"

"Fine, just those two from the Pulsar," T'Pol conceded.

Trip smiled at her. "I love you darlin'"

"I know," T'Pol replied dryly. "Where would you like the service?"

Trip thought for a moment before he replied.

"How about you let me take care of that?" Trip asked as she felt his barriers come up slightly.

"A surprise?" T'Pol asked him.

"No peeking," Trip warned her.

T'Pol felt a little nervous.

"Nothing embarrassing," Trip promised.

"Fine," T'Pol agreed.

Trip smiled at her. "You'll love it."

T'Pol gave him a small smile.

"I need to return to my duties; can we speak more about this tomorrow?"

"Of course, darling'," Trip smiled.

"Try and enjoy your vacation," T'Pol said.

"'Try' being the operative word," Trip offered.

"T'hy'la…" T'Pol started.

"Fine," Trip relented. "But in five weeks you are all mine."

T'Pol nodded and the communication ended.

Trip hit the comm button and called his cousin Maggie.

"Trip!" She answered quickly.

"Hey Mags," Trip smiled at her. "I have a favor to ask."

"Anything!" Maggie said with a huge smile.

"That's what I was hoping you'd say," Trip smiled back at her.

" _Are you sure this is advisable?" T'Pol asked him anxiously._

" _Nothing with you is advisable," Trip said as he leaned into her and kissed her soundly on the lips._

" _The entire delegation is down in the lobby," T'Pol said as she returned his kisses._

" _But they aren't here," Trip chuckled as he ran his hands up and down her body._

" _You rented a room for a sexual encounter," T'Pol clarified._

" _If you are agreeable," Trip chuckled as he kissed down her neck. "We don't have long, it won't be terribly romantic but…"_

" _But it will fulfill a need," T'Pol said as he ran a hand up his shirt and played with a nipple._

" _We don't have to…we could, uh, we could just talk and…" Trip hedged, worried he's made assumptions he shouldn't have._

 _They had been together for a short while, had become physical once before but, technically, she was still married to Koss. He should feel guilty about doing this…but he didn't._

" _I want you," T'Pol said as she pulled his dress uniform from his shoulder and carefully placed it on a nearby chair. He would need to return to the reception, as would she, and neither of them could look rumpled. "Now."_

 _Trip gently pulled her uniform from her body and folded it before he sat it on a dresser. The remainder of his uniform was now gone, and he was watching as she carefully folded his pants and placed them over a hanger._

 _When she was done, he pulled her against his frame and kissed her madly. Her hands freely roamed his chest and arms and she made soft moaning sounds as he continued his ministrations. Their coupling was quick and fierce and so sweaty they both jumped into the shower before dawning their uniforms again._

 _Trip and T'Pol quickly dressed and were back that the reception less than 30 minutes later. Trip waltzed up to the bar and ordered a tonic water._

" _Where'd you disappear to?" Malcolm asked him with a smirk._

" _I've been here the entire time," Trip lied as he spotted T'Pol take her place next to Jon._

" _And that's why you smell like soap and have wet hair?" Malcolm asked before he rumpled Trip's wet locks._

" _Mal," Trip chastised as he fixed his hair._

" _Isn't she still married?" Mal asked quietly; looking towards T'Pol._

" _Don't remind me," Trip mumbled as he brought his drink to his lips._

" _You're sure of what you're doing mate?" Malcolm asked his friend._

" _Nope," Trip said honestly._

 _T'Pol then looked over at him concerned._

" _But I don't know what choice I have," Trip sighed as he turned away from T'Pol and leaned against the bar._

" _You know, you always do have a choice," Malcolm said as he leaned against the bar next to Trip._

 _Trip chuckled at his comment. "You've never been in love, have you?" Trip inquired._

" _I've cared quite deeply for…" Malcolm started._

" _No Mal, I mean, in love," Trip said as he met his friend's eyes. "You can't see straight, you think about her all the time, you'd do anything for…"_

" _Even escaping an official Starfleet function to shag a married woman in a hotel room a few floors up?"_

 _Trip sighed and looked down at his glass. "Even that."_

 _Malcolm placed a supportive hand on Trip's shoulder. "You'll figure out a way."_

" _God, I hope so," Trip said as he looked over his shoulder at the woman who made him do crazy things. "I really do, Mal."_

Trip sat in the meditation garden trying to calm his mind but the excitement of all that was ahead of him was getting the better of him. He was about to become the Captain of the fastest Starship Starfleet had built. T'Pol would be his first officer and they'd no longer have to live apart. And, to place the cherry on top, she'd agreed to marry him on Earth. A year ago, hell, eight months ago, he'd never anticipated he would be here.

Trip smiled and shook his head; his life really had taken a swing in a very positive direction. And, her Pon Farr was complete, so they wouldn't have to worry about that for another few years. Mercifully.

"Captain Tucker?" A Vulcan woman asked him as she approached his spot.

Trip stood and nodded that she was correct.

"The elder will see you now," she said as she gestured for him to follow her.

Trip nodded and picked up his water bottle. T'Pol had suggested this man to purge his memories of their pon farr so he could quiet his mind about all the things he'd done to her. Trip felt like a wimp taking this path, but he'd been using a great deal of energy blocking those memories since pon farr had ended. And, even then, some of the more…animalistic moments came back to haunt him in his dreams. If he was to focus on a future with T'Pol and the task ahead of getting the Juno ready for launch, he needed to purge those memories.

Trip walked into the front foyer of a large temple and followed the Vulcan female down a series of ornate hallways until she stopped in front of a door. She opened it and gesture for him to step inside.

Inside was an elderly man sitting in a meditative pose across the room.

"Your mate contacted me to make this appointment," the elderly man said as soon as the door shut. "I am Urna an elder residing as a spiritual guide here at Dishol Temple. I need to confirm that you wish for the purging of your pon farr memories as well?"

"I want them purged, that's correct," Trip nodded, not moving from his spot and unsure what to do.

"Join me," Urna said as he gestured to a nearby cushion.

Trip joined the man on the cushion and set his water bottle to the side.

"It's fascinating that you are a human bound to a Vulcan," Urna said. "And you survived pon farr."

"Survived?" Trip asked shocked.

"Theoretically, a human should not have the stamina or the strength to complete pon farr successfully. Congratulations are in order."

"Uh, thank you," Trip said, confused. T'Pol hadn't told him he could die.

"I am interested to see your memories of pon farr as I have a theory that it is not as strong between a human and a Vulcan as it would be between two Vulcans."

"You'll see it all?" Trip asked uncomfortable.

"That is the only way it is purged it to hand those memories to another, then I place them in a wall of memories," Urna explained.

"So, my pon farr memories live in a wall?" Trip asked, surprised and confused. "No offense, but why can't I just put them there myself and skip the middle man?"

Urna thought for a moment before he answered.

"I am skilled at only releasing pon farr memories and nothing more," he said as he met Trip's eyes. "And, even though you are bound, a human would not have the capability to place his or her memories in the memory wall and have them adequately protected. Very few Vulcans have that ability; I am one of them."

"Huh," Trip said.

"So, privacy…"

"I will not share your memories with others, speak of them, or indicate that you ever completed this process," Urna said. "Confidentiality is guaranteed."

Trip nodded in understanding.

"Shall we begin?" Urna asked.

Trip took a deep breath and closed his eyes. "Yeah."

He felt Urna's fingers touch his temples and within moments the man was in his mind and every sexual, aggressive, physical and animalistic act he had been involved in leading up to and during pon farr was before him like a movie. Trip felt his stomach lurch, tears break from his eyes, sobs release from his mouth and feeling of guilt and shame run across his psyche. He saw every act, every bruise he inflicted, everything he called her, every time he held her down…then, suddenly, it was gone.

"How do you feel?" Urna asked him.

"Dizzy," Trip replied as the man held his shoulder firmly to keep him from falling over. "Sick to my stomach like food poisoning and I've got a killer headache."

Urna nodded and hit a button.

"Do you remember your pon farr?" Urna asked Trip.

"I remember a feeling of sexual need, overwhelming desire, and completion," Trip said as he met the man's eyes. "Nothing specific."

"Good," Urna said as the woman who directed Trip inside appeared.

"Captain Tucker needs a room to rest, some nourishment and a hyposray for his headache," Urna said to the woman. "He will be with us for the remainder of the day."

She nodded and helped Trip to his feet.

Despite the horrible feelings in his entire physical being, Trip felt lighter somehow.

"Thank you," Trip said to Urna.

"You are most welcome," Urna said as he too stood. "You are a fascinating human and one worthy of a Vulcan wife."

Trip looked at him confused. "Thank you."

Urna bowed and left the room while the Vulcan woman helped him to the room he would rest in for the remainder of the day.

XXX

TBC


	14. Chapter 14

Author's Note: Please see earlier notes. Italics = flashbacks.

XXX

Trip Tucker had been sitting with Sarah Hastings all day conducting interviews.

"Is it just me or do they all blend together after a while?" Trip asked her as he sat back in his chair.

"These are my top scores," Hastings said as she passed her PADD to him. "That being said, I really liked Fortino and he didn't score as well."

"Yeah, I liked him too," Trip sighed as he picked up his PADD. "Score means little to me. I mean, it's nice if they have a high score, but that's not going to make any decisions for me."

"Who did you like best Captain?" Sarah asked.

"I liked Fortino, Kaushal, Picowcz, and Saunders, for sure," Trip said as he met her eyes. "Thoughts?"

"Permission to speak freely, sir?" Sarah asked.

"Of course," Trip said with a shrug.

"Saunders has a history of taking issue with a female commander," Sarah said.

"Oh," Trip said as he sat up and looked at Saunders's service record a little closer. "I don't want that."

"He's never been formally reprimanded, but his attitude is there," Sarah said. "Did you notice he didn't look at me once when answering any of my questions?"

"I'm sorry, Sarah. I didn't," Trip apologized. "Let's strike him from the pool, you don't need that shit and neither do I."

"Thank you, sir," Sarah said with a nod.

"Anyone else stand out?" Trip asked. "We still have a few interviews tomorrow…"

"I thought you were leaving for Earth tomorrow?" Sarah asked. "For two days leave?"

"Yeah, but they've scheduled a couple of interviews in the morning, and I've got to squeeze them in," Trip sighed. It was not the start to his wedding day he was hoping for, especially after the surprise he had for T'Pol tonight.

"I'm sorry, sir," Sarah said, honestly.

"Well, that's what happens when you're in charge," Trip sighed and then chuckled. "Heed this as a warning if you ever decided to sit in that chair."

Sarah smiled back at him.

"A few of the crew are going to drinks tonight if you wanted to…"

"Normally, I'd say yes, but I've got to get out of here now if I'm going to be where I need to be tonight," Trip said. "Can you file the scores and our preferences?"

"Of course," Sarah nodded and stood as Trip stood from his seat.

"I'll see you bright and early tomorrow Sarah," Trip smiled at her. "We start at 08:00 and I need to be out of here by 10:00."

"I'll keep my questions brief," Sarah smiled at him before he exited the room.

Trip walked quickly across the base toward his temporary quarters and, letting himself inside, stripped naked as he walked toward the washroom. He had only twenty minutes before he was meeting Travis at the launch bay. He'd planned to surprise T'Pol at her party tonight and, if he didn't get moving, would not make it. He jumped in the shower and started to scrub a day's worth of grime off him.

" _I feel kinda weird us doing this right after your divorce is finalized," Trip said as he soaped up her shoulders._

" _We did this before my divorce was finalized," T'Pol reminded him as the spray rained down on the two of them._

" _Yes, and we literally just left your ex-husband," Trip said as he motioned for her to turn around, so he could get her back._

" _Koss knew we were together, sexually, emotionally," T'Pol said absently._

" _Yeah, it might have been nice if you shared that little tidbit with me before I found out in court," Trip said as he soaped up his hands again._

" _I assumed you would know," T'Pol said as she turned to look over her shoulder at him. "It was only fair that I informed him."_

" _I can't believe I'm asking this but, how'd he take it?" Trip asked._

" _He was, at first surprised, and then he seemed worried about the ramifications for his family line," T'Pol indicated._

" _I'm glad he's already found someone," Trip said as he stopped washing her and instead wrapped his arms around her mid-section and pulled her back against his front._

" _That brings me relief as well," T'Pol admitted._

 _Trip sighed and rested his chin on her shoulder._

" _I'm sorry you had to admit those things to the court," Trip said quietly._

" _I don't regret being with you," T'Pol said as she rested her head against him. "I regret the harm it has brought to all of us."_

 _Trip nodded and then reached over and turned off the water. He let go of her and stepped out of the shower and, finding a towel for her, wrapped it around her frame._

 _He then wrapped one around his waist and guided her toward the bedroom._

" _I think today is not the day to do this," Trip said as he sat down with her on the bed. "And I know it'll be weeks before I even have a chance to see you again, but, well, it just feels like we need to just be with each other. Does that make sense?"_

" _What do you wish to do?" T'Pol asked, knowing he was right, but unsure of what that meant for them._

" _I want to take you to dinner," Trip smiled at her. "I don't know any places on Vulcan, but I'm sure Carol can give me some suggestions."_

" _I would like that," T'Pol nodded._

" _I just feel like we've been on such a whirlwind lately, that we need to just slow down and spend time," Trip said softly as he ran his hand up and down her arm._

" _I agree," T'Pol said softly._

" _So, put on something nice and I'll contact Carol for some restaurant suggestions," Trip smiled at her before he rose from the bed and walked toward his comm._

Trip turned off the shower and quickly dried off before he dawned some clothes and raced to meet Travis at the launch bay. Two hours later, he was stepping out of the shuttle and onto Enterprise after talking and laughing with Travis for the entire trip. He was using a lot of energy to block T'Pol and he hoped he could keep it up until the part started in 20 minutes.

"I can't wait to see her face," Travis said with a smile as they walked toward the exit doors.

"You're sure the Captain has her in his ready room?" Trip asked before he hit the button to release the doors.

"The Captain promised," Travis said. "They're filling out her final report to Starfleet before he relieves her of duty from his ship."

"Good," Trip smiled as they walked toward the Mess.

When he entered he was greeted by a lot of surprised exclamations of his name and his title. Yes, he thought, it was smart to get this over with before her party started.

Trip worked his way around the crowd greeting crew members, hugging most of them, and hearing updates on what they had been up to. He also received many congratulations on his Juno Captaincy.

Only a few people on Board knew about him and T'Pol, most, or all of the crew knew of her transfer to his ship. So, when he was asked again and again why he was there, he quickly replied that he wouldn't miss T'Pol's going away party for the world. It seemed to satisfy most people.

He had sent her a message earlier today about his long day of interviews and ordered her to have a good time at her party. He even made her promise to have a drink and to stay until the end; both of which she hesitantly agreed to.

Trip continued to block her as he stood at the back of the room awaiting her arrival.

"I hope this wasn't too presumptuous," Hoshi said as she handed Trip an envelope. "But The Captain, Travis, Mal & I got you and T'Pol this."

Trip looked down at the envelope and opened it. Inside was a voucher for a couple's spa overnight stay.

"It's rated as one of the best in the area, and I have you tentatively booked for tomorrow night," Hoshi said.

"Hosh?" Trip asked as he met her eyes.

"I wanted you to know before tomorrow so, if you wanted to do this instead, you could cancel whatever you booked," Hoshi said. "Or, you can always do this next time you are back."

"I just booked a nice hotel," Trip said with a shrug. "I think T'Pol would like this better."

"Good," Hoshi smiled at him. "Your also booked in for a couple's massage and the geothermal pools."

"Are you kidding me?" Trip asked, astonished.

"We know it's going to be a short honeymoon," Hoshi said with a smile. "But we wanted it to be the best one possible."

"Thank you," Trip said as he placed it back in the envelope and then hugged her fiercely. "You guys are…"

Just then clapping broke out and all eyes turned toward T'Pol and the Captain who had just walked into the room. Trip released Hoshi and looked toward his stoic girlfriend.

"Thank you for joining us for T'Pol's going away party," Jon said loudly as he looked around the room. "She started out as a thorn in my side and now, as she leaves me, I don't know what we are going to do without her."

The crowd burst into laughter and applause.

"T'Pol has been brave, thoughtful, kind and logical, sometimes all at once," Jon continued. "And without her, we wouldn't be where we are today. I know that for a fact. We owe her a great deal, but she is such a humble person that I doubt she'd ever take any credit for the scrapes she's pulled our sorry asses out of."

The crowd then laughed and applauded again.

"I know she is going to be an amazing First Officer on Juno, the fastest and most advanced Starfleet ship, and will help that crew in ways that can't even be measured," Jon said with a smile as he offered his hand to T'Pol. "I am quite sorry to lose you, but I wish you and Trip all the best as you take Juno and Starfleet to new and exciting places."

T'Pol shook his hand and, to the surprise of the Captain and everyone else, leaned in and gave him a quick hug.

"That's my girl," Trip mumbled to himself and Hoshi elbowed him in the ribs.

Someone handed T'Pol and the Captain glasses of white wine and the Captain raised his glass to the crowd.

"Please raise your glasses with me as we salute T'Pol of Vulcan," Jon said as he looked out onto the crowd and spotted Trip in the back. "The finest First Officer in Starfleet and one hell of a friend who we will all miss. To, T'Pol."

"T'Pol!" The crowd cheered and took a drink from their glasses.

When they quieted all eyes were on her, expecting a speech. Trip had noticed that she hadn't looked around much, a sign she was incredibly nervous. She hated being the centre of social situations and was doing her best to meet the expectations that the occasion called for.

T'Pol raised her head and, looking out into the crowd started to speak.

"A Vulcan serving on a human vessel for the amount of time that I have is un…"

She stopped and starred at Trip in surprise. All eyes followed her line of sight directly toward his smiling red face.

"Trip," she sighed softly as he removed the barriers and she felt him across their bond.

Some nervous chatter broke out and she heard his voice in her head telling her she needed to start speaking again.

"I apologize," T'Pol said as she turned a tinge of green and shook her head slightly.

"A Vulcan serving on a human vessel for the amount of time I have, is unheard of. And yet, here we are. I originally came on board thinking I could teach humans but have found that you have taught me. You have taught me about friendship, commitment, resilience, and determination. You have taught me a great deal about the Vulcan philosophical concept of infinite diversity in infinite combinations. That there isn't always just one answer, and that logic, although helpful, does not always have all the solutions. Thank you for making me a better officer."

Applause broke out across the Mess Hall and many people stepped toward T'Pol to offer her their hand to shake.

Trip stayed back and watched her get the attention and praise she deserved for once. It was unfair that she would never Captain a ship, but at least she could help him Captain the Juno. He may be in charge on paper, but he had every intention of making it a Co-Captaincy in practice; she and he would show Starfleet her abilities.

Thirty minutes later she finally got a break from the crowd and Trip approached her and offered his hand.

"Congratulations," Trip smiled at her. "On a great career with Enterprise."

"Thank you," T'Pol smiled up at him. "You're here?"

"I am," He said smugly.

"And you managed to keep it a secret," T'Pol added.

"I did," he said with a smirk.

"I am going to have to learn how to read your blocks better," T'Pol said. "To me, it seemed as if you were pre-occupied in meetings."

"That was the idea," Trip said as he winked at her.

"Fascinating," T'Pol said before she released his hand.

"Enjoying your party?" Trip asked as he clasped his hands behind his back and looked around.

"I am," T'Pol nodded.

"I see your glass is empty," Trip said as he noted her wine glass dangling from her hand.

"I promised I would have a glass," T'Pol said as she looked at him knowingly.

"I should get you another," Trip said with a smirk.

"Maybe you should?" T'Pol countered. "I'm feeling much more celebratory since your arrival."

"Are you ready for tomorrow, darlin?" Trip whispered.

"I am, you?" T'Pol inquired.

"It can't come soon enough," Trip smiled at her as he reached for the glass in her hand, their fingers brushed and a jolt of electricity ran through their bodies. "I'll get you that glass and let you circulate."

"Are you staying on board tonight?" T'Pol asked as she stepped toward him slightly.

"If someone invites me," Trip smiled broadly at her. Their hands were mere centimetres from each other and he wanted nothing more then to clasp hers in his and kiss it.

"Consider yourself invited," T'Pol said with a small smile that only he saw.

"I'll see you back there later," Trip said as he briefly touched her pinkie finger with his and then left to get her that promised drink.

XXX

TBC


	15. Chapter 15

**Author's Note: Please see previous notes. Anything in italics= flashback.**

 **There's only a few chapters to go before we come to the end of this story. I wanted to (originally) end it when Trip left the Pulsar but decided we needed to get them on Juno before everything concluded.**

 **Enjoy! Let me know what you think!**

XXX

"Thank you," Trip said as T'Pol finished zipping up his uniform.

"Are you wearing your dress uniform for the ceremony?" T'Pol asked as she placed a hand on his chest.

It was 05:00 and Trip needed to meet Travis in the shuttle bay to get back to Earth for the rest of his interviews. He'd not even been on board Enterprise for 8 hours and he was already leaving. And T'Pol, keeping her promise to him, had stayed until the end of the party and they'd not made it back to her room until midnight.

"Nope," Trip smiled down at her as he placed his hands on her hips. "A suit."

T'Pol quirked an eyebrow.

"Now, where's this dress…?" Trip asked as he started to look around.

"That is none of your concern," T'Pol said as she placed a hand on his cheek and made him look at her. "You will see it later today."

"You know we're breaking protocol by seeing each other today," Trip said as he inched a little closer. "It's supposed to be unlucky."

"Do you believe that?" T'Pol asked.

Trip hesitated and thought for a moment, then he smiled down at her. "No."

"You look tired," T'Pol said as she touched his cheek.

"I am," Trip admitted. "Yesterday was a long day and instead of sleeping in with you and making our way to Earth for the service, I'm jetting off to do these stupid interviews and…"

"And once they are complete, you and I will have some time," T'Pol said. "I intend for you to get as much sleep as possible."

"We have to consummate the marriage," Trip said with a waggle of his eyebrows.

"We have already consummated it this morning," T'Pol reminded him. "You need rest more than you need…"

"And now the bossing begins," Trip chuckled.

Just then the ship jolted and pitched to the starboard side.

"What the hell?" Trip asked as he held onto her to keep from falling; her sense of balance had always been superior to his.

"Are we under attack?" T'Pol asked just as alarms started to ring and all crew were called to their stations.

Trip and T'Pol ran for her door and hit the buzzer to open it seeing crewman running through the halls.

"What's happened?" Trip asked Ensign Marcuse who was bolting past them.

"A breach, right by the warp drive," Marcuse said as he took in their former Chief Engineer with wet hair and their former First Officer with wet hair dressed in a robe. He, and several other crewmen had noted that they had exited her quarters together at the early hour.

"I better get to engineering," Trip said as he turned to look at T'Pol.

"I'll come with you," T'Pol said as they both turned to run toward Engineering.

When they bolted inside there were fires everywhere and Engineers running around trying to shut down the systems.

"Hess?" Trip yelled.

"She's been taken to Sick Bay, Captain," Kesley said as he ran up to the chief.

"Where Rostov?" Trip asked.

"He's been injured as well," Kesley said, out of breath. "As has Lovaks."

"Who the hells in charge?" Trip snapped.

"Uh, me," Kesley, the junior Engineer noted.

"We need to do a manual shut down," Trip said as he rushed toward the warp coil.

"That's what they were trying to do when there were some explosions and…"

"Trip!" T'Pol called to him, she needed to know what he wanted her to do.

"You take care of the panel!" Trip yelled back to her.

She nodded and ran to the station and started to prepare the system to shut down.

"Clear Engineering!" Trip yelled to the engineers putting out fires all over the bay. "Only necessary personnel!"

Several engineers dropped their fire extinguishers and left Engineering, but others stayed and continued to put out fires.

"Captain to Engineering, Anna, why the hell is the…?"

"It's T'Pol," T'Pol said as her hands flew across the panel. "All of the senior engineering staff on shift have been injured and…"

"What are you doing there?" Jon asked, upset.

"Trip's doing a manual shut down and I'm…"

"I want you both out of there!" Jon yelled.

"Captain, the warp coil will…"

"We can shut down from the bridge," Jon said. "Malcolm is working on it right now. You two…"

T'Pol closed the comm link and ignored future hails from him. She watched as Trip pulled out a bunch of circuits and sparks flew everywhere. She then watched as another explosion erupted sending him almost flying off the warp drive, but he luckily, held on. Then he was running toward her and she was ducking under the panel with Ensign Kesley. She felt his body slam into her and cover her with all his force before the warp drive sent shock waves toward them and then, stopped.

"Are you okay?" Trip asked her as he placed a hand on her back.

T'Pol nodded, there was a loud ringing in her ears and some minor burns on her hands, but she was, otherwise, unscathed.

"You?" T'Pol asked as he helped her stand.

"I think I singed my hair and I've got some nasty burns," Trip smiled down at her as he held her hands in his. "Your robe is ripped."

Trip leaned down and pulled it shut over her naked body beneath and she cinched the waist a little tighter and attempted to cover herself better.

"Kesley?" Trip asked over T'Pol's shoulder.

"I'm fine Captain," Kesley said as he looked at the two of them standing so familiarly together. He had noticed that the Captain had fixed her robe and had been looking at her incredibly concerned.

"Tell the crew outside to come back in and start the repairs," Trip said. "I'll get Phlox down here to deal with injuries."

"Yes, sir," Kesley nodded. "Thank you, Captain. I've not done a manual override before and…"

"It's lucky I was here then," Trip said with a smirk.

They watched Kesley walk away.

"Darlin, let's see if Anna has some spare clothes in her office for you," Trip said as he placed a hand at the back of her waist and guided her toward the Chief's office. She walked inside to search, and Trip hit the comm button.

"Captain, manual shutdown is complete," Trip called to the Bridge. "Engineering is working on repairs and once you're at Jupiter Station they should have you up and running in no time."

"Thanks Trip," Jon sighed. "Nice to have you back, if only for this."

"We're going to need Phlox down here for some burns and injuries," Trip said.

"Hoshi has already sent him," Jon said.

"What caused this?" Trip asked.

"Cloaked satellite," Jon said. "We're going to tractor beam it in and investigate once security has cleared it. Our sensors didn't pick it up until it peeled off some plating above engineering and…well, you know the rest."

Trip nodded. The Romulans were known for satellite cloaking and Starfleet would be interested to find out why they were leaving monitors so close to Jupiter Station.

"Come see me once things are under control down there," Jon said. "I understand you need to be on Jupiter Station for interviews?"

"Yeah, I'm going to need someone to pilot me in," Trip said. "And T'Pol too because it doesn't look like impulse is going to get you to Jupiter station on time and with the repairs…"

There was a long pause on the other side. Jon had just realized that no one on board Enterprise was going to make their wedding now. That idea resonated with Trip at the same time.

"Tell T'Pol to be ready to leave in an hour," Jon said.

"I will," Trip said as he ended the communication.

He took a deep breath and walked into Anna's office to see what T'Pol had found. She had a Dalhousie University Sweatshirt over her top half and the robe she had been wearing tied like a skirt over her bottom half. She looked like a collegiate version of Tarzan's Jane.

"Now, that's a look," Trip said with a chuckle.

"I should run a diagnostic of…"

"Now, hold on," Trip said as he grabbed her by the shoulders at the exit to the office. "There are engineers to do that and you need to get those burns taken care of."

"I'm fine," T'Pol said.

"I heard Kesley calling in all off-duty staff, so they've got plenty of help," Trip said. "You need to get those taken care of and pack, you're shuttling out of here with me in less than an hour."

T'Pol looked at him confused.

Trip leaned in, "You're going to be late for your own wedding if you don't shuttle onto Jupiter Station with me."

T'Pol sighed and nodded.

"What caused the breach?" T'Pol asked.

"Looks like it was a Romulan satellite," Trip said in a hushed voice. "Jon's bringing it on board once it's been cleared of possible explosives."

"This close?" T'Pol whispered back.

Trip nodded and frowned.

"Go to Sick Bay and get some ointment on those burns," Trip said. "Phlox is heading down here to patch up the engineers. Once everything is under control, I'll get our bags and meet you at the launch bay at 06:20?"

T'Pol nodded and left engineering to get treated and finish packing while Trip helped Kesley hand out the assignments.

Forty-five minutes later, Trip entered her quarters to discover he wasn't alone. Two crewmen were loading storage containers with her things onto a dolly.

"Captain!" They both yelled as they stood at attention.

Trip cleared his throat and tried to not look like a man caught with his hand in the cookie jar. "Crewman, are you almost finished with Commander T'Pol's things? We need to shuttle onto Jupiter Station as quickly as possible."

"Yes, these are the last," one Crewman said before her reached down and placed the last storage bin on the dolly.

"Do you know where Commander T'Pol is?" Trip asked.

"She was called by the Captain, sir" one Crewman said before he engaged the dolly and it started to move toward her door.

"Thank you," Trip nodded to them as they left, and the door shut behind them.

He gathered his small travel satchel and threw the sling over his one shoulder. He hadn't come with much, knowing he was just on board for a few hours. Trip looked around her empty quarters and sighed. It had all started here; with the neuropressure. And now, they were both leaving it behind as they embarked on a new part of their life together. Together. Trip liked that word.

He smiled to himself and walked toward the door hitting the door access button and walking out into the hallway, not looking back.

Ten minutes later T'Pol entered her empty quarters and a wave of loss washed over her. The last time she'd felt that in this room, it had been very different circumstances.

 _T'Pol had returned from Vulcan a day earlier than expected and no-one was there to greet her upon arrival. The Captain was on Earth in meetings for the day and Trip was probably avoiding her. She wanted desperately to explain to him why she had married Koss and was hoping, this day when no one was expecting her to perform her duties, would serve that purpose._

" _T'Pol!" Hoshi said as she walked past her in the hallway. "I thought you weren't due back until tomorrow?"_

" _I wasn't," T'Pol nodded. "But I grew tired of Vulcan."_

" _The Captain said you got married?" Hoshi asked._

 _Apparently, Trip had informed the Captain of her new marital status. She wondered if he'd divulged anything else._

" _I did," T'Pol sighed, she had been trying to reconcile this decision with herself; she wasn't ready to explain it to anyone but Trip._

" _Who is he?"_

" _An architect, his name is Koss," T'Pol said blandly. "Our families arranged the marriage when we were children."_

" _Oh," Hoshi tried to mask her surprise. She had hoped T'Pol had a romantic life; apparently that was not the case. "You're pleased?"_

 _T'Pol said nothing and turned to walk toward her quarters._

" _I guess everything changes all at once?" Hoshi asked as she walked next to her._

" _What else has changed?" T'Pol asked as they approached her quarters._

" _Trip's promotion for one," Hoshi smiled at her._

" _I'm sorry?" T'Pol asked._

" _You didn't know?" Hoshi asked, surprised. "I thought the Captain or Trip would have…"_

" _What promotion, Hoshi?" T'Pol asked, her heart hammering inside of her._

" _He's the Captain of the Pulsar," Hoshi said. "He's been gone a week and a half."_

" _What?" T'Pol asked, as she felt dread wash over her body._

" _As soon as he came back from leave he was offered the job and took it," Hoshi said as she looked carefully at her superior officer. "Are you okay?"_

 _T'Pol straightened and took a deep breath. "I'm fine. I will have to congratulate him."_

" _Yeah," Hoshi said as she eyed T'Pol strangely._

" _Have a nice day, Ensign," T'Pol said before the hit the buzzer to her quarters and walked inside, the door shutting behind her._

 _She dropped her bag immediately and looked around the room; as if it would provide her with answers. Trip was gone, there was no explaining the choice she made, no seeing him in the halls, no working side-by-side any more. T'Pol felt her stomach lurch as she ran to the washroom and vomited the contents of her stomach into the toilet. She had ruined everything._

 _Through teary eyes she dragged her body to standing and walked toward her console to read the official orders and promotion information. What she found was something different when she turned on the screen._

 _ **T'Pol,**_

 _ **I'm assuming by now you've heard about my transfer and promotion. After everything that has happened between us, it was the smart thing to do. You are a married woman and, as much as I wish that was different, it's not. I hope you find happiness with Koss, I really do. I love you T'Pol and I only want the very best for you. I hope when we meet again we can be friends, because I can't imagine my life without you in it. Take care of yourself.**_

 _ **Love,**_

 _ **Trip**_

 _T'Pol read the message three times before she dropped her head onto her desk and cried. She had never, in her life, felt that much loss in a moment. She had lost the man she loved forever; she had hurt him immeasurably and, even if they were able to be friends again, it would never be the same. She had irreparably damaged the one relationship that meant the most to her._

T'Pol looked at the empty room and remembered that day. She had spent almost 24 hours in bed sleeping and crying and cursing herself. And then, the next day, she had risen and retuned to duty, like good Vulcan. But, there was a heaviness in her heart for weeks afterwards; she had hurt the one person she loved most and there was no making amends for that.

Today the loss was different. It was the loss of the familiar, the comfortable, the secure. She had been on Enterprise for years, had made friends here, had fallen in love here. Juno was a new stage in her life, but Enterprise had been the place she had grown and changed the most as an individual.

T'Pol tucked the PADD she had been carrying under her arm and turned to leave, glancing back once at the place she'd called home for years before she stepped out into the bright hallway and towards her new life.

"There she is!" Jon called to T'Pol as she walked into the launch bay. "We thought we were going to have to send out a search party."

"I was just ensuring everything had been moved from my quarters," T'Pol nodded at everyone. Malcolm, Phlox, Travis, Hoshi and Jon were standing by the shuttle pod.

"They aren't going to be able to make it," Trip said with a sigh.

"I assumed that would he the case," T'Pol said, sadly.

"But we'll be there in spirit," Malcolm offered.

"Maybe you can comm in at the dinner for a bit?" Trip asked.

"I'll set it up," Hoshi smiled at them.

Trip started to hug everyone, and Phlox pulled T'Pol to the side.

"This is my wedding gift to you," Phlox said as he handed T'Pol an open box with a stone in it.

"Thank you," T'Pol said kindly.

"It's a Denobulan Quartz stone that every Denobulan family displays in their bedroom for luck, prosperity and good health. If you place your hands on it for a period of ten minutes a day it is supposed to enhance fertility as well," Phlox smiled at her.

"I will ensure neither of us handles it for an extended period," T'Pol said honestly.

Phlox burst out laughing at her answer.

"It is just an old wives' tale but, you never know," Phlox chuckled.

"What's this?" Trip asked as he leaned over her and picked up the stone.

"Maybe you should place it out of reach?" Phlox asked with a raised eyebrow as he watched Trip handle the stone and look at it.

"It is dangerous if handled," T'Pol admonished him as she took the stone from his hands and placed it back in the box.

"Dangerous?" Trip asked, confused.

"Isn't that the fertility stone from Denobula?" Hoshi ask as she looked in the box.

"Fertility is just one of the…"

"You gave them a fertility stone?" Malcolm scoffed.

"It's a traditional Denobulan wedding gift," Phlox said defensively.

"Maybe we should pack that away somewhere," Trip said as he eyed the stone suspiciously.

"Agreed," T'Pol said as she placed the lid on the box.

"Uh, thanks Phlox," Trip said to his friend. "Maybe one day we'll get use out of it."

Phlox smiled at the pair of them and nodded.

T'Pol shook hands with everyone and allowed the Captain to hug her briefly. Before long they were in the shuttle to Jupiter Station.

"You and I are named in the official report," T'Pol said, quietly as they sat down for the hour trip.

"And probably in the unofficial report as well," Trip sighed. "I also filed the official Engineering log."

"Oh," T'Pol sighed.

"Kesley was in over his head and I figured I could at least help with that. I wrote the report in ten minutes and it would have taken him an hour or more."

"That was nice of you," T'Pol said.

"Well darlin," Trip said as he sat back and stretched an arm over the back of her shoulders. "They were going to know soon enough…"

T'Pol closed her eyes and sighed.

"It's going to be fine," Trip said softly.

"I hope so," T'Pol said as she leaned her frame into his and relaxed. "Your entire career is in jeopardy. Maybe…"

"They've got bigger things to worry about with that Romulan satellite," Trip whispered. "Trust me, we aren't that important."

T'Pol closed her eyes and rested her head against his shoulder.

"Travis, did you catch that game between France and Uganda?" Trip asked his friend while T'Pol tried to rest.

The next hour was spent discussing the finer points of the international handball league and some player trades. Before they knew it, they had landed on Jupiter Stations and Admiral Pine was there to greet them.

"Admiral!" Trip said surprised.

"We need to talk," Admiral Pine said as he started to walk away. Trip and T'Pol waved goodbye to Travis and quickly followed him into a private conference room.

"Why am I getting reports from the Enterprise with your name on them?" Admiral Pine asked when the door shut behind them.

"I went on board for T'Pol's going away party," Trip offered, knowing more questions were coming.

"And why were you exiting Commander T'Pol's quarters at 05:03 when the alarms were raised on Enterprise?" Admiral Pine asked, his voice brusk. "We have video footage and I personally interviewed the Crewman you spoke with."

"You may want to sit down for this," Trip cautioned him as he took a breath.

"Just tell me," Admiral Pine said, annoyed.

"We're married," Trip said.

"What?!" the Admiral snapped.

"T'Pol and I got married almost a year ago," Trip said. "It was a Vulcan ceremony. The Earth one is today."

"And you didn't file the paperwork with Starfleet?"

"No," Trip said.

"May I ask why you breached protocol?"

"I wanted T'Pol as my first officer," Trip said. "She deserves the post, hell, she deserves her own Captaincy, but she's never getting that. I wanted the best damn first officer on my ship and I wanted my wife on board my ship."

"Shit," Admiral Pine said as he sat heavily in a nearby chair.

"You would never have allowed her to be posted on Juno," Trip said as he sat as well and looked at the Admiral. They had a great relationship and Trip hoped he hadn't burnt this bridge with Caleb Pine.

"And she can't be posted there now," Admiral Pine said as he looked between the two of them. "We've never had a married couple in charge of ANY ship, never mind the fastest and most advanced one in our fleet."

"We're both qualified and experienced," Trip said as he leaned forward. "Let us be your test."

"It doesn't work that way Trip," Admiral Pine sighed.

"Has the video footage of the manual warp core been analysed?" T'Pol asked.

The Admiral looked up at T'Pol, surprised in the change of subject.

"Of course," Admiral Pine said.

"Was their any point when Trip or myself made an incorrect decision or hesitated because of our relationship?"

"No," Admiral Pine sighed.

"Then is it a fair assumption that we will function the same on Juno?" T'Pol asked.

"Admiral, we've been together, off and on for years," Trip offered. "Have we ever not done our job in all that time?"

"Years?" Admiral Pine asked.

Trip and T'Pol nodded.

"You could spin it to the press," Trip said, excited. "Make it about us and the mission. Inter-species co-operation"

"I don't think I'll get people to agree to…"

"Can you try?" Trip pleaded. "Because if it comes down to it, you've lost both of us if we're not on Juno together."

"Is that a threat?" Admiral Pine asked, surprised.

"No sir," Trip said honestly. "It's just the truth. After all this time living as we have been, apart and barely seeing each other, I don't want that for the rest of my life and neither does T'Pol."

"What would you do? Starfleet is your…"

"I get offers from private contractors all the time," Trip said. "I could have a very lucrative future. But I love Starfleet and T'Pol loves Starfleet and we don't want to go anywhere but the Juno. But, if you can't send both of us there, then neither will go."

"And that's your position?" Admiral Pine said, he hoped Trip would back-track a little; maybe reach a compromise about eventually having his wife on his ship.

Trip looked toward T'Pol and she nodded.

"It is, sir," Trip said. "I know we were wrong to keep the information from you, but in our position, we really felt we had no options."

"I'll speak with them and get back to you," Admiral Pine said as he rose from his chair. "Congratulations on your wedding today. I hope it's not the end of your careers."

"We hope so as well," Trip said as he shook the man's hand.

"This was an awfully big risk," the Admiral noted. "You're one hell of a Captain Trip, and you are a great Commander T'Pol, I'd hate to lose you."

"We'd hate to go," Trip admitted.

"It's worth it?" Admiral Pine asked them.

"He's worth it," T'Pol said softly, surprising the Admiral.

Trip looked toward his wife and smiled. "I'm sure you know my answer."

He nodded at the two of them and left.

"Trip…" T'Pol started.

"What's done is done darlin," Trip said with a smile. "And I wasn't lying, both or none. I'd be just as happy working for Turquoise Industries or one of those companies. I'd be miserable out there without you."

He leaned in and kissed her softly on the forehead.

"Come on darlin," Trip said as he pulled at her hand. "Let's tie the knot."

XXX

TBC


	16. Chapter 16

**Author's Note: We're at the end everyone! Thank you for sticking with this story through it's completion. I hope you enjoy how I've decided to leave it—I have really enjoyed writing this one. Anything in italics is a flashback.**

 **Please let me know what you think!**

XXX

"I now pronounce you, married," Maggie Fletcher said with a smile to the couple across from her. "You may kiss."

Trip Tucker leaned in and softly kissed T'Pol's lips. He didn't want to embarrass her, so he kept it short but full of meaning.

Clapping broke out from the small crowd and the couple turned to look at the six-people smiling around them.

Charles Tucker the second immediately stepped forward and engulfed his son and, partially, his new bride in an all-encompassing hug.

"I'm so happy for you son," Charlie said as he kissed the side of Trip's face.

"Thanks pop," Trip said as he gripped his father a little tighter.

Charlie pulled back and Lenore, Trip's mother, stepped forward and extended a hand towards T'Pol.

"Congratulations and welcome to the family," Lenore said. "I'm sorry about Charlie."

"No apologies necessary," T'Pol said as she shook the woman's hand.

"He thinks everyone, and every occasion involves bear hugs," Lenore said with a smile.

"It's his wedding for god's sake," Charlie chuckled. "No offense Maggie."

Maggie just smiled at him.

Mohammad stepped forward and shook Trip and T'Pol's hands. "I wish you a lifetime of happiness."

"Thanks Mohammad," Trip smiled at his friend. "You're visiting Asmal and the kids while you're here?"

"Yes, I have a few days," Mohammad smiled.

"Perfect," Trip smiled back.

"Trip," Carol said warmly as she embraced him trying not to wrinkle the beautiful brown suit she helped him take measurements for, so it could be made for today. "I hope you and T'Pol are as happy as Peter and I."

"We'll try," Trip chuckled as he embraced her. "Thank you for everything, Carol."

"I hope we don't lose you," Carol said quietly. "They'd be idiots to let you go."

Trip kissed the side of her face and released her to shake T'Pol's hand and offer her congratulations as his brother and sister-in-law stepped forward to hug him and wish him their best.

After all the congratulating was done, Trip looked at his friends and family and then at T'Pol. She stood in her gorgeous one-shouldered burnt orange dress with the background of desert grasses and red rocks in the distance and she was breathtaking.

"How about you get started for the restaurant and we meet you there?" Trip asked his friends.

Everyone nodded and left for the land cars and Trip joined his bride in taking in the view.

"You surprised me with your choice," T'Pol said as he came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her mid-section, resting his chin on her shoulder.

"Do you like it?" Trip asked, hoping the desert location didn't make her miss Vulcan more.

"It's perfect," T'Pol said softly as she leaned back into him. "Thank you."

"You match the rocks in that dress," Trip smiled as he kissed her one bare shoulder.

"You revealed nothing," T'Pol said. "Your blocking techniques are admirable."

Trip chuckled at her compliment.

"I just saw the dress and liked it," T'Pol said quietly. "I found it on Elisia."

"Elisia?" Trip said. "Really? You've had it all this time?"

"I have," T'Pol allowed a small smile to grace her lips.

"Speaking of admirable blocking…" Trip chuckled.

They just stood in silence for another few minutes taking in the view.

 _It was the last day of their time on Vulcan and Trip awoke to a sight he was sure must have been a dream; T'Pol was standing naked on the balcony outside their room with the dry desert air wafting inside. They'd made love last night after their Vulcan wedding for the first time this trip as the house had been filled with relatives until then. She was quite vocal in her approval of his activities and Trip knew he had left her quite satisfied when they eventually drifted off to sleep._

 _He rose and, naked himself, walked out onto the balcony and looked around. There weren't any houses that could see them from this vantage point, but it still felt weird for the two of them to be standing here like this._

" _Mind telling me why you've decided, suddenly, to become a nudist?" Trip chuckled as he walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her midsection._

" _I like the feel of the air on my skin," T'Pol said. "Desert air in the morning has a cool warmth that is indescribable."_

" _It kinda does, you're right," Trip chuckled._

" _I know your family is on Earth," T'Pol said quietly. "But I would still like to come here when we can."_

" _Of course," Trip said. "You just say the word, darlin, and we'll come here for our leave. I love my family, but I'm happy anywhere you are."_

 _T'Pol nodded and rested her head against his chest._

" _I am sorry things will always be difficult," she said softly._

" _I'm sorry?" Trip asked, confused._

" _Marrying a Vulcan woman and not a human…"_

" _Who said I ever wanted to marry a boring human?" Trip chuckled._

 _T'Pol couldn't help the chuckle that escaped her as well._

" _And if things are difficult for me, they'll also be difficult for you," Trip said as he kissed her shoulder. "Logic dictates that truth."_

 _T'Pol turned and looked at him with a quirked eyebrow._

" _See, you're growing on me already," Trip smirked at her. "And I'll take a little challenge in my life, if that means I get to spend it with you, darlin'"_

 _T'Pol leaned back into his warm embrace and Trip thought no moment could be more perfect than this._

"We should get to the restaurant," T'Pol said softly, not really wanting to, but knowing it was expected.

"I meant to ask if you wanted to take my last name?" Trip asked her as he stood up straight and she turned to face him. "You don't have to."

"Why wouldn't I?" T'Pol asked.

"Well, it is your choice," Trip said. "You could just stay T'Pol."

"I like the acknowledgement of our union with your last name," T'Pol said as he took her hand and they started for the car.

"Okay Mrs. Tucker," Trip smiled down at her.

"You're pleased I have," T'Pol said, feeling warmth across their bond.

"I would have been fine either way, but there's a certain amount of pride in calling you Mrs. Tucker," Trip smirked.

When they arrived at the car T'Pol looked at him seriously.

"Any messages?"

Trip sighed. "I would rather check tomorrow."

"And I would rather you checked today," T'Pol insisted.

"Whether we find out after we've had dinner and a nice night and some geo-thermal whatever they got for us, isn't going to make any difference," Trip noted. "In fact, it's quite illogical for you to…"

"Please just check," T'Pol sighed.

Trip sighed as well and reached for the comm in his pocket.

"There's a message from Caleb," Trip sighed. "T'Pol, I think…"

"It is illogical to not listen to the decision, now that we know one has been made," T'Pol said as she stepped toward him. "Just open it."

Trip nodded and pressed the button.

 **"Trip, all I have to say is that you are damn lucky that Romulan satellite was discovered, or else this would be a very different message. Starfleet has decided we need our finest and most experienced out there right now and that includes you and T'Pol. Congratulations on your wedding you lucky son-of-a-bitch. You two report for duty at 08:00 the day after tomorrow. See you on the Juno. Admiral Pine out."**

Trip cheered and lifted T'Pol into his arms. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and allowed the act of exuberance as no one else was around.

He then let her down and kissed her passionately and forcefully on the lips.

"God damnit I love you," Trip said with happiness and gratitude.

T'Pol touched his smiling face and smiled herself. "I am so happy, my love."

"We've got a lot to celebrate," Trip smiled down at her, the joy from their bond wrapping around the two newlyweds like a blanket.

"We do," T'Pol smiled at him before he leaned down and kissed her quickly, once again.

THE END!


End file.
